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EGYPTIAN  ART 


EGYPTIAN  ART 


STUDIES 

BY 

SIR  GASTON  MASPERO 

Hon.  K.C.M.G.,  Hon.  D.C.L.,  and  Fellow  of  Queen's  College,  Oxford 

Member  of  the  Institute  of  France^  Professor  at  the  College  de  France^ 
Director-General  of  the  Serruice  des  Antiquites^  Cairo 


TRANSLATED  BY  ELIZABETH  LEE 


WITH   107  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NEW  YORK 

D.  APPLETON  &  COMPANY 

MCMXIII 


(All  rights  reserved) 


PREFATORY  NOTE 


The  following  essays  were  written  during  a  period  of  more 
than  thirty  years,  and  published  at  intervals  of  varying 
lengths.  The  oldest  of  them  appeared  in  Les  Monuments 
de  VAj^t  Antique  of  my  friend  Olivier  Rayet,  and  the 
others  in  La  Nature  at  the  request  of  Gaston  Tissandier,  in 
the  Gazette  des  Beaux- Arts,  in  the  Monuments  Piot,  and 
chiefly  in  the  Revue  de  TArt  Ancien  et  Moderne,  where  my 
friend  Jules  Comte  gave  them  hospitality.  As  most  of 
these  periodicals  do  not  circulate  in  purely  scientific  circles, 
the  essays  are  almost  unknown  to  experts,  and  will  for 
the  greater  part  be  new  to  them,  Indeed,  they  were  not 
intended  for  them.  In  writing  them,  I  desired  to  familiarize 
the  general  public,  who  were  scarcely  aware  of  their  exist- 
ence, with  some  of  the  fine  pieces  of  Egyptian  sculpture 
and  goldsmiths'  work,  and  to  point  out  how  to  approach 
them  in  order  to  appreciate  their  worth.  Some,  after  various 
vicissitudes,  had  found  a  home  in  the  Museums  of  Paris  or 
of  Cairo,  and  I  wrote  the  notices  in  my  study,  deducing 
at  leisure  the  reasons  for  my  criticisms.  Others  I  caught 
as  they  emerged  from  the  ground,  the  very  day  of  or  the 
day  after  their  discovery,  and  I  described  them  on  the 
spot,  as  it  were,  under  the  influence  of  my  first  encounter 
with  them :  they  themselves  dictated  to  me  what  I  said 
of  them. 

Some  persons  will  perhaps  be  surprised  to  find  the  same 
ideas  developed  at  length  in  several  parts  of  the  book.  If 


5 


Prefatory  Note 

they  will  carry  their  thoughts  back  to  the  date  at  which  I 
wrote,  they  will  recognize  the  necessity  of  such  repetitions. 
Egyptologists,  absorbed  in  the  task  of  deciphering,  had 
eyes  for  scarcely  anything  except  the  historical  or  religious 
literary  texts  ;  and  so  amateurs  or  inquirers,  finding  nothing 
in  the  works  of  experts  to  help  them  to  any  sound  inter- 
pretation of  the  characteristic  manifestations  of  Egyptian 
art,  were  reduced  to  register  them  without  always  under- 
standing them,  for  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  concepts  that 
had  imposed  their  forms  on  them.  It  is  now  admitted  that 
such  objects  of  art  are  above  all  utilitarian,  and  that  they 
were  originally  commissioned  with  the  fixed  purpose  of 
assuring  the  well-being  of  human  survival  in  an  existence 
beyond  the  grave.  Thirty  years  ago,  few  were  aware  of 
this,  and  to  convince  the  rest,  it  was  necessary  to  insist 
continually  on  the  proofs  and  to  multiply  examples.  I 
might  of  course  have  suppressed  a  portion  of  them  here, 
but  had  I  done  so,  should  I  not  have  been  reproached,  and 
quite  rightly,  with  misrepresenting  and  almost  falsifying  a 
passage  in  the  history  of  the  Egyptian  arts  ?  Tlie  ideas 
which  govern  our  present  conception  did  not  at  once  reach 
the  point  where  they  now  are.  They  came  into  being  one 
after  the  other,  and  spread  themselves  by  successive  waves 
of  unequal  intensity,  welcomed  with  favour  by  some, 
rejected  by  others.  I  had  to  begin  over  again  a  dozen 
times  and  in  a  dozen  different  ways  before  I  obtained  their 
almost  universal  acceptation.  I  was  at  first  laughed  at 
when  I  put  forward  the  opinion  that  there  was  not  one 
unique  art  in  Egypt,  identical  from  one  extremity  of  the 
valley  to  the  other  except  for  almost  imperceptible  nuances 
of  execution,  but  that  there  were  at  least  half  a  dozen  local 
schools,  each  with  its  own  traditions  and  its  own  principles, 
often  divided  into  several  studios,  the  technique  of  which  I 

G 


Prefatory  Note 


tried  to  determine.  In  the  end  the  incredulous  raUied  to 
my  side,  and  it  would  have  been  bad  grace  on  my  part  to 
leave  out  of  the  articles  which  helped  to  convert  them,  at 
least  I  hope  so,  the  repetitions  which  led  to  their  being 
convinced. 

Besides,  I  am  sure  that  they  wdll  render  my  readers  of 
to-day  the  same  service  that  they  rendered  formerly  to  my 
colleagues  in  Egyptology.  When  they  have  thoroughly 
entered  into  the  spirit  of  the  Egyptian  ideas  concerning 
existence  in  this  world  and  the  next,  they  will  understand 
what  Egyptian  art  is,  and  why  it  is  above  everything 
realistic.  The  question  for  Egyptian  art  was  not  to  create 
a  type  of  independent  beauty  in  the  person  of  the 
individuals  who  furnish  the  principal  elements  of  it,  but  to 
express  truthfully  the  features  which  constituted  that 
person  and  which  must  be  preserved  identical  as  long  as 
anything  of  him  persisted  among  the  living  and  the  dead. 
But  why  should  I  epitomize  here  in  a  necessarily  incomplete 
way  ideas  which  are  amply  set  forth  in  the  book  itself  ?  I 
shall  do  better  in  using  the  small  space  left  me  in  thanking 
the  publishers  who  have  kindly  authorized  me  to  reproduce 
the  illustrations  which  accompanied  my  articles,  Jules 
Comte,  the  directors  of  La  Nature,  and  my  old  friends  of 
the  firm  of  Hachette.  They  have  thus  collaborated  in  this 
book,  and  it  will  owe  a  large  part  of  its  success  to  their 
kindness. 


7 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Prefatory  Note       .         .         .         .         .         .  .5 


I 

Egyptian  Statuary  and  its  Schools        .         .         .  .17 

II 

Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus       .         .         .         .  .36 

III 

A  Scribe's  Head  of  the  IVth  or  Vth  Dynasty  .         .  .49 

IV 

Skhemka,  his  Wife  and  Son  :  a  Group  found  at  Memphis      .  55 

V 

The  Crouching  Scribe  :  Vth  Dynasty      .         .         .  .60 

VI 

The  New  Scribe  of  the  Gizeh  Museum  .         .         .  .66 

VII 

The  Kneeling  Scribe  :  Vth  Dynasty       .  .  .  .74 

VIII 

Pehournowri  :   Statuette  in   painted   Limestone  found  at 

Memphis  ........  79 

9 


Contents 

IX 


PAGE 

The  Dwarf  Khnoumhotpou  :  Vth  or  VIth  Dynasty      ,         .  85 


X 

The  "  Favissa  "  op  Karnak,  and  the  Theban  School  of  Sculp- 
ture       ....         ....  90 

XI 

The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari         .....  106 

XII 

The  Statuette  of  Amenophis  IV  .         .          .  .         .  120 

XIII 

Four  Canopic  Heads  found  in  the  Valley  of  the  Kings  at 

Thebes    .         .         .         .         .         .  .  .126 

XIV 

A  Head  op  the  Pharaoh  Harmhabi         ....  135 

XV 

The  Colossus  of  Ramses  II  at  Bedrechein       .         .         .  140 

XVI 

Egyptian  Jewellery  in  the  Louvre        ....  145 

XVII 

The  Treasure  op  Zagazig   ......  154 

XVIII 

Three  Statuettes  in  Wood  .....  172 

10 


Contents 

XIX 


PAGE 

A  Feagment  op  a  Theban  Statuette       .         .         .  .178 


XX 

The  Lady  Toui  of  the  Louvke  and  Egyptian  Industrial 

Sculpture  in  Wood      ......  183 

XXI 

Some  Perfume  Ladles  of  the  XVIIIth  Dynasty         .         .  190 

XXII 

Some  Green  Basalt  Statuettes  of  the  Saite  Period  .  195 

XXIII 

A  Find  op  Saite  Jewels  at  Saqqarah     ....  201 

XXIV 

A  Bronze  Egyptian  Cat  belonging  to  M.  Barrere      .         .  208 

XXV 

A  Find  op  Cats  in  Egypt    ......  214 

Index  .........  217 


11 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


FACING  PAGE 

THE  MYCERINUS  OF  MIT-RAHINEH         .              .              .  ,  .38 

MYCERINUS  (eEISNER  HEAD)    .              .              .              ,  .  .38 

ALABASTER  STATUE  OF  MYCERINUS       .              .              .  .  .40 

MYCERINUS,  HATHOE,  AND  THE  NOME  OXYRRHINCHUS  .  .  42 

MYCERINUS,  HATHOR,  AND  THE  NOME  CYNOPOLITE      .  .  .42 

MYCERINUS  AND  HIS  WIFE         .              .             .             .  .  .44 

MYCERINUS,  HATHOR,  AND  THE  NOME  OF  THE  SISTRUM  .  .  46 

MYCERINUS  AND  HIS  WIFE  (DETAIL)    .              .              .  .  .46 

MYCERINUS  AND  HIS  WIFE  (DETAIL)    .             .              .  .  .48 

scribe's  HEAD  ........  50 

SKHEMKA  WITH  HIS  WIFE  AND  SON     .             .              .  .  .56 

CROUCHING  SCRIBE         .             .             .             .             .  .  .60 

THE  NEW  SCRIBE  OF  THE  GIZEH  MUSEUM        .              .  .  .66 

STATUE  OF  RANOFIR      .             ,             .              .              .  .  .       72 . 

KNEELING  SCRIBE          .              .              .              .              .  .  .74 

PEHOURNOWRI   .             .             .             .             .             .  .  .80 

THE  DWARF  KHNOUMHOTPOU    .              .              .              .  .  .86 

THE  WORKS  AT  KARNAK  IN  JANUARY,   1906     .              .  .  .92 

MONTOUHOTPOU  V          .              .              .              .              .  .  .94 

HEAD  OF  A  COLOSSUS  OF  SANOUOSRIT  .              .             .  .  .94 

SANOUOSRIT  AND  THE  GOD  PHTAH        .             .              .  .  .94 

BUST  OF  THOUTMOSIS  III           .              .              .              .  .  .96 

ISIS,  MOTHER  OF  THOUTMOSIS  III          .              .             .  .  .96 

13 


Illustrations 


FACING  PAGE 

SANMAOUT  AND  THE  PRINCESS  NAFEROURIYA  .  .  .  .98 

STATUETTE  IN  PETRIFIED  WOOD            .....  100 

THEBAN  KHONSOU           .......  100 

STATUE  OF  TOUTANOUKHAMANOU            .             .             .             .             .  100 

THE  SO-CALLED  TAIA     .......  100 

RAMSES   II          .......             .  100 

RAMSES  IV  LEADING  A  LIBYAN  CAPTIVE           ....  100 

THE  PRIEST  WITH  THE  MONKEY             .....  102 

OSORKON  II  OFFERING  A  BOAT  TO  THE  GOD  AMON       .             .             .  104 

QUEEN  ANKHNASNOFIRIABRE      ......  104 

MANTIMEHE        ........  104 

NSIPHTAH,  SON  OF  MANTIMEHE              .....  104 

HEAD  (SAITE  PERIOD)    .......  104 

THE  COW  OF  DEIR-EL-BAHARI  IN  HER  CHAPEL             .             .             .  104 

AMENOTHES  II  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR               ....  106 

AMENOTHES  II  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR               ....  106 

THE  COW  HATHOR          .......  108 

AN  UNKNOWN  FIGURE  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR  .  .  .112 

PETESOMTOUS  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR  .....  114 

PSAMMETICHUS  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR             ....  116 

PSAMMETICHUS  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR              ....  118 

AMENOPHIS  IV   .             .              .             .             .             .             .             .  120 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .             .             .             .              .             .             .  126 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .......  126 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .......  128 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .             .             .             .             .             .             .  130 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .......  130 

QUEEN  TIYI  (FULL  FACE)           .              .             .             .             .             .  130 

14 


Illustrations 


FACIKG  PAGE 

QUEEN  TIYI  (profile)  .......  130 

PRINCESS  OP  THE  FAMILY  OP  TIYI  (PROFILE)                .              .              .  132 

PRINCESS  OF  THE  FAMILY  OP  TIYI  (PULL  FACE)           ,              ,              .  132 
KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .              .              .              .              .             .  .132 

KING  KHOUNIATONOU     .......  134 

HEAD  OP  THE  PHARAOH  HARMHABI        .              .              .             .              •  136 

THE  HALF-BURIED  COLOSSUS  OF  RAMSES  II      .              .              .              •  140 

THE  COLOSSUS  OF  RAMSES  II  EMERGING  FROM  THE  EARTH    .              .  140 

EGYPTIAN  JEWELLERY  OF  THE  XIXTH  DYNASTY            .              .              .  146 

GOLD  PECTORAL  INLAID  WITH  ENAMEL              ....  146 

PECTORAL  OF  RAMSES  II           ....             .             .  148 

PECTORAL  IN  SHAPE  OF  A  HAWK  WITH  A  RAM's  HEAD            .              .  148 

SILVER  BRACELETS  AND  EARRINGS        .....  156 

GOLD  EARRING  FROM  THE  TREASURE  OF  ZAGAZIG        .              .              .  156 

ONE  OF  RAMSES  Il'S  BRACELETS  (OPEN)             ....  158 

ONE  OF  RAMSES  Il's  BRACELETS  (CLOSED)       ....  158 

GOLD  CUP  OF  QUEEN  TAOUASRIT           .              .              .              .              .  160 

SMALLER  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD  VASES  (PRONT  VIEW)      .              .              .  160 

SMALLER  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD  VASES  (bACK  VIEW)         .             .              .  162 

MASS  OF  SILVER  VASES  SOLDERED  TOGETHER  BY  OXIDE         .             .  162 

LARGER  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD  VASES  (PRONT  VIEW)        .              .              .  164 

LARGER  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD  VASES  (BACK  VIEW)          .              .              .  164 

THE  VASE  WITH  THE  KID          .              .              .              .              .              .  164 

ONE  OF  THE  SILVER  PATERAE  OF  ZAGAZIG  (SIDE  VIEW)          .             .  166 

SILVER  STRAINER           .......  166 

THE  BOTTOM  OF  ONE  OF  THE  ZAGAZIG  SILVER  PATERAE         .             .  168 

STATUETTES  IN  WOOD  .......  172 

THE  MOND  STATUETTE  (FRONT  VIEW)  .....  178 

15 


Illustrations 


FACING  PAGE 

THE  MOND  STATUETTE   (pROFILE)         .....  180 

THE  LADY  TOUI,  STATUETTE  IN  WOOD              .                           .             .  184 

STATUETTE  IN  WOOD     .......  186 

STATUETTE  IN  WOOD     .......  186 

PERFUME  LADLE             .......  190 

PERFUME  LADLE  ....  .  .  .190 

PERFUME  LADLE             .......  192 

PERFUME  LADLE             .......  192 

PERFUME  LADLE             .......  194 

GREEN  BASALT  STATUETTES  OF  THE  SAITE  PERIOD     .             .             .  196 

NECKLACE  AMULET         .......  202 

VULTURE  AMULET          .......  202 

GOLD  PALM-TREE            .......  202 

BOAT  OF  SOKARIS           .              ......  202 

ram's  HEAD        ........  202 

GOLD  HAWK       ........  202 

HAWK  WITH  HUMAN  HEAD          .              .             .             .             .             .  202 

HAWK  WITH  ram's  HEAD           ......  202 

VULTURE             .              .             .             .             .             .             .             .  202 

ISIS  WITH  THE  CHILD  .......  202 

CROUCHING  NEITH          .......  202 

MONKEYS  WORSHIPPING  THE  EMBLEM  OF  OSIRIS          .             .             .  204 

VULTURE  WITH  EXTENDED  WINGS         .....  204 

HAWK  WITH  EXTENDED  WINGS              .....  204 

THE  SOUL  (front  view)         ......  204 

THE  SOUL  (back  view)           ......  204 

BRONZE  CAT  OF  THE  SAITE  PERIOD      .....  208 

BRONZE  CAT       .              .                           .....  214 

16 


EGYPTIAN  ART 


I 

EGYPTIAN  STATUARY  AND  ITS  SCHOOLS^ 

I  OPENED  F.  W.  von  Bissing's  work  t  with  a  certain  feeling 
of  melancholy,  for  it  was  a  thing  that  I  had  hoped  to  do 
myself.  Ebers  had  suggested  to  Bruckmann,  the  publisher, 
that  he  should  entrust  the  task  to  me,  and  I  was  on  the 
point  of  arranging  with  him  when  the  preparations  for  an 
Orientalist  Congress  to  meet  at  Paris  in  1897  deprived 
me  of  the  leisure  left  me  by  my  lectures  and  the  printing 
of  my  "  History,"  and  I  was  forced  to  give  up  the  project. 
Herr  von  Bissing,  who  was  less  occupied  then  than  I 
was,  consented  to  hazard  the  adventure,  and  no  one 
could  have  been  better  equipped  than  he  was  to  carry 
it  through.  The  seeking  of  materials,  the  execution  of 
typographical  cliches,  the  composition  of  the  text  and  its 
careful  setting  forth  exacted  eight  years  of  travelling  and 
continuous  labour.  Bissing  issued  the  first  part  at  the 
end  of  1905,  and  five  other  parts  have  quickly  followed, 
forming  almost  the  half  of  the  work,  seventy-two  plates 
folio,  and  the  portions  of  the  explanatory  text  belonging 
to  the  plates. 

*  From  the  Journal  des  Savants^  1908,  pp.  1-17. 
f  F.  W.  von  Bissing,  "  Denkmaler  ^gyptischer  Skulptur."  Text, 
4:to  ;  portfolio  of  plates,  fol.  ;  Bruckmann,  Munich,  1906-8. 

17  B 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


I 

The  title  is  not,  at  least  as  yet,  exactly  accurate. 
Egyptian  sculpture  includes,  in  fact,  besides  statues  and 
groups  in  alto-relievo,  bas-reliefs  often  of  very  large 
dimensions  which  adorn  the  tombs  or  the  walls  of  temples. 
Now  Bissing  has  only  admitted  statues  and  groups  to 
the  honours  of  publication :  the  few  specimens  of  the 
bas-reliefs  that  he  gives  are  not  taken  from  the  ruins  them- 
selves, but  have  been  selected  from  pieces  in  the  museums, 
stelae,  or  fragments  of  ruined  buildings.  It  is  then  the 
monuments  of  Egyptian  statuary  that  he  presents  to  us 
rather  than  those  of  Egyptian  sculpture  as  a  whole. 

Having  made  that  statement  and  thus  defined  the 
extent  of  the  field  of  action,  it  must  be  frankly  admitted 
that  he  has  always  made  a  happy  selection  of  pieces  to  be 
reproduced.  Doubtless  we  may  regret  the  absence  of  some 
famous  pieces,  such  as  the  Crouching  Scribe  of  the  Louvre 
or  the  Cow  of  Deir  el-Bahari.  The  fault  is  not  his,  and 
perhaps  he  will  succeed  in  overcoming  the  obstacles  which 
forced  him  to  deprive  us  of  them.  The  omissions,  at 
any  rate,  are  not  numerous.  When  the  list  printed  on 
the  covers  of  the  first  part  is  exhausted,  amateurs  and 
experts  will  have  at  their  disposal  nearly  everything 
required  to  follow  the  evolution  of  Egyptian  statuary 
from  its  earliest  beginnings  to  the  advent  of  Christianity. 
The  schools  of  the  Greek  and  Roman  epochs,  unjustly 
contemned  by  archaeologists  who  have  written  on  these 
subjects,  are  not  wanting,  and  for  the  first  time  the 
ordinary  reader  can  decide  for  himself  if  all  the  artists 
of  the  decadence  equally  deserve  contempt  or  oblivion. 
Bissing  has  attempted  a  complete  picture,  not  a  sketch 
restricted  to  the  principal  events  in  art  between  the  IVth 

18 


Egyptian  Statuary 


Dynasty  and  the  XXXth.  No  serious  attempt  of  the 
kind  had  before  been  made,  and  on  many  points  he  had 
to  open  out  the  roads  he  traversed.  For  the  moment  he 
has  stopped  at  the  beginning  of  the  Saite  period ;  thus 
we  have  as  yet  no  means  of  judging  if  the  plan  he  has 
imposed  on  himself  is  carried  out  to  the  end  with  a 
rigour  and  firmness  everywhere  equal :  but  a  rapid 
examination  of  the  parts  that  have  appeared  will  show 
that  it  has  been  executed  with  fullness  and  fidelity. 

Four  plates  are  devoted  to  Archaic  Egypt:  the  two 
first  are  facsimiles  of  the  bas-reliefs  that  decorate  the 
stele  of  the  Horus  Qa-aou,  and  the  so-called  palette  of 
the  king  we  designate  Nar-mer,  since  we  have  not 
deciphered  his  name.  It  is  in  truth  very  little,  but  the 
excavations  have  rendered  such  poor  accounts  of  those 
distant  ages  that  it  is  almost  all  that  could  be  given  of 
them  ;  it  might,  however,  have  been  worth  while  to  add 
the  statuettes  of  the  Pharaoh  Khasakhmoui.  Notwith- 
standing the  omission,  the  objects  that  appear  give  a 
sufficient  idea  of  the  degree  of  skill  attained  by  the 
sculptors  of  those  days.  The  stele  of  Qa-aou  does  not, 
of  course,  equal  that  of  the  King-Serpent  ^  which  is  in 
the  Louvre ;  it  is,  however,  of  a  fairly  good  style,  and  the 
hawk  of  Horus  is  nearer  to  the  real  animal  than  those 
of  the  protocol  were  later.  Similarly  the  scenes  engraved 
on  the  palette  of  Nar-mer  testify  to  an  indisputable 
virtuosity  in  the  manner  of  attacking  the  stone.  The 
drawing  of  the  persons  is  less  schematic  and  their  bearing 
freer  than  in  the  compositions  of  classical  art,  but  it  is 
evident  that  the  craftsman  had  as  yet  no  very  clear 
idea  of  the  way  in  which  to  compose   a  picture  and 

*  It  may  also  be  asked  if  the  stele  of  the  King-Serpent  is  an 
original  or  a  restoration  of  the  time  of  Setoui  I. 

19 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

group  its  elements.  Let  us  confess,  nevertheless,  that  the 
bas-reliefs  are  far  superior  to  the  statues  yet  known.  We 
possess  about  half  a  dozen  of  them  scattered  over  the 
world.  Bissing  studied  one  to  the  exclusion  of  the  others, 
the  one  in  the  Naples  Museum,  and  it  may  be  thought 
to  be  sufficient  if  only  aesthetic  impressions  are  desired, 
for  nothing  could  be  rougher  or  more  awkward.  The 
head  and  face  might  perhaps  pass,  but  the  rest  is  ill- 
proportioned,  the  neck  is  too  short,  the  shoulders  and 
chest  are  massive,  the  legs  lack  slenderness  under  a  heavy 
petticoat,  the  feet  and  hands  are  enormous.  The  defects 
cannot  be  ascribed  to  the  hardness  of  the  material,  for  the 
Scribe  of  the  Cairo  Museum,  which  is  in  limestone, 
displays  them  as  flagrantly  as  the  good  people  in  granite 
at  Naples,  Munich,  or  Leyden.  I  must  not  therefore 
conclude,  however,  that  they  are  constant  faults  with  the 
Thinites :  the  statuettes  of  Khasakhmoui  are  of  a  less 
heavy  workmanship  and  more  nearly  approach  that  of 
later  studios.  That  the  ruins  have  rendered  only  a  few 
that  possess  worth  does  not  prove  that  there  may  not 
have  been  excellent  ones :  we  must  have  patience  and 
wait  till  some  happy  chance  belies  the  mediocrity. 

The  Memphian  Empire  has  furnished  thirteen  plates, 
and  I  doubt  if  they  are  enough.  The  number  of  master- 
pieces, and  especially  of  pieces  which,  without  possessing 
claims  to  perfection,  offer  interest  on  some  count,  is  so 
large  that  Bissing  could  easily  have  found,  in  the  Cairo 
Museum  alone,  material  enough  to  double  the  number. 
Very  probably  it  was  due  to  the  publisher  and  a  question 
of  economy :  but  all  the  same  I  regret  the  absence  of 
half  a  dozen  statues  that  would  have  made  a  good  appear- 
ance by  the  side  of  the  Scribe  of  the  Berlin  Museum. 
The  chief  species  of  the  period  are  at  least  represented 

20 


Egyptian  Statuary 


by  very  good  examples  :  statues  of  the  Pharaoh  seated, 
receivmg  homage,  are  represented  by  two  of  the  Chephren 
of  the  Cairo  Museum ;  of  the  Pharaoh  standing,  by  the 
Pioupi  in  bronze ;  those  of  private  individuals  standing 
and  isolated,  or  in  groups,  by  the  Cheikh  el-Beled  of  the 
Gizeh  Museum,  by  the  Sapoui  and  the  Nasi  of  the 
Louvre,  or  by  the  pair  at  Munich ;  those  of  individuals 
seated  by  the  Scribe  of  Berlin  and  by  one  of  the  Readers 
of  Cairo.  One  of  the  Cairo  statues,  of  mediocre  work- 
manship, is,  however,  curious,  because  it  shows  us  a  priest 
completely  nude,  by  no  means  usual,  and  circumcized,  a 
fact  still  less  usual.  Three  fragments  preserved  at  Munich, 
portions  of  three  stelae,  a  complete  stele  from  the  Cairo 
Museum,  an  episode  borrowed  from  the  tomb  of  Apoui, 
of  which  Cairo  possesses  almost  an  entire  wall,  provide 
specimens  of  bas-reliefs  for  the  student  to  study,  with- 
out, however,  permitting  him  to  suspect  the  variety 
of  motives  and  abundance  of  detail  usually  met  with  in 
the  necropolises  of  Saqqarah  or  of  Gizeh.  Reduced  to 
these  elements,  Bissing's  book  will  make  the  impression 
on  its  readers  of  a  noble  art  exalted  by  inspiration,  minute 
and  skilful  in  the  material  execution,  but  monotonous, 
and  confined  in  a  rather  narrow  circle  of  concepts  and 
forms  of  expression.  It  is  only  fair  to  add  that  the  book 
is  not  finished  and  that,  thanks  to  the  system  employed 
of  double  and  triple  plates,  it  is  quite  easy  to  insert 
new  documents  among  those  of  the  parts  that  have 
already  appeared.  Some  of  the  lacunae  will  assuredly  be 
filled  up,  and  the  additions  will  place  us  in  a  better 
position  to  judge  the  worth  of  the  ancient  Memphian 
school. 

The  notices  of  the  first  Theban  Empire  are  more 
numerous,   and  they   render    it    possible  to   study  the 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

history  of  statuary  during  the  long  interval  that  separates 
the  Heracleopolitan  period  from  the  domination  of  the 
Shepherd   Kings.    For  the  Xlth   Dynasty,  besides  the 
wonderful  statue  of  Montouhotpou   III,  there  are  bas- 
reliefs  or  paintings  found  at  Gebelein  in  the  ruins  of  a 
temple  of  Montouhotpou  1.    Afterwards,  we  have,  in  the 
Xllth  Dynasty  itself,  the  seated  statues  of  Sanouosrit  I, 
of  Nofrit  and  of  Amenemhait  III,  the  sphinx  of  Amenem- 
hait  III  that  Mariette  declared  to  be  the  portrait  of  a 
Hyksos  king,  an  admirable  king's  head  preserved  in  the 
Vienna  Museum,   and  pieces  of  lesser  interest,  among 
which  a  curious  bas-relief  of  Sanouosrit  I  dancing  before 
the  god  Minou  at  Coptos  should  be  mentioned.    For  the 
Xlllth  and  following  Dynasties,  I  only  see  as  yet  the 
Sovkhotpou  of  the  Louvre,  the  barbarous  head  of  Mit- 
Fares,  and  the  Sovkemsaouf  of  Vienna,  but  we  must  wait 
for  the  next  parts  before  deciding  to  what  point  Bissing 
has  made  use  of  the  rich  store  of  documents  available  for 
that  period.    The  second   Theban   Empire,   so  rich  in 
souvenirs  of  all  kinds,  offered  an  embarrassing  choice :  the 
Cairo  Museum  alone  possesses  material  enough  for  two 
or  three  volumes,  especially  since  the  fortunate  excava- 
tions  conducted   by   Legrain  at  the  favissa  of  Karnak. 
The  subjects  in  favour  of  which  Bissing  decided  have 
their  special  importance  :  they  are  each  the  actual  head 
of  a  pillar,  the  type  of  a  series  that  he  could,  in  many 
cases,  have  reproduced  almost  entire,  so  well  has  chance 
served  us  in  the  course  of  these  last  years.    The  statues 
of  Amenothes,  of  Thoutmosis,  of  the  Ramses,  of  the  Har- 
mais  are  celebrated,  and  it  is  unnecessary  to  enumerate 
them  one  after  the  other  :  the  reader  will  see  them  again 
with  pleasure  as  he  goes  along,  and  will  admire  the  mar- 
vellous skill  with  which  the  photographer  has  reproduced 

22 


Egyptian  Statuary 

them,  and  the  printer  has  responded  to  the  photographer's 
skill.  The  pictures  of  the  volume  are  often  perfect,  and 
plates  like  those  of  the  head  of  one  of  the  sphinxes  of 
Amenemhait  III  are  so  successful  that  in  looking  at 
them  we  have  almost  the  sensation  of  the  original.  In  a 
few,  however,  the  printing  is  too  heavy  and  the  thick- 
ness of  the  ink  has  distorted  and  coarsened  the  modelling. 
As  a  general  rule  the  larger  number  of  the  defects  I 
have  noted  are  due  to  this  tiresome  question  of  inks.  I 
know  too  well  from  my  own  experience  the  difficulties 
caused  by  the  obstinacy  of  the  workmen  on  that  point, 
so  I  am  able  to  make  excuses  for  both  Bruckmann  and 
Bissing. 

II 

So  much  for  the  illustrations  :  the  portion  of  the  text 
as  yet  published  greatly  increases  their  interest,  and 
assures  the  work  permanent  value.  It  contains  informa- 
tion as  to  the  origin  of  the  object,  its  migrations,  its 
actual  home  to-day,  its  state  of  preservation  and,  at  need, 
the  restorations  it  has  undergone :  descriptions  showing 
careful  research,  and  extended  bibliographies  complete  the 
suggestions  made  by  the  picture,  and  inform  us  of 
previous  criticisms.  The  shortest  of  the  notices  fills  two 
compact  quarto  columns,  and  are  reinforced  by  numerous 
footnotes ;  many  of  them  are  veritable  essays  in  which 
the  subject  is  examined  on  every  side  and  as  exhaustively 
as  is  possible.  Vignettes  are  inserted  which  exhibit  the 
object  in  a  different  light  from  that  of  the  plate,  or  show 
the  reader  some  of  the  analogous  motives  referred  to  in 
the  discussion. 

Repetition  of  similar  types  has  sometimes  prevented 
Bissing  from  developing  his  views  as  a  whole,  and  we 

23 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

are  compelled  to  look  under  several  rubrics  before  learn- 
ing his  full  opinion.  This  is  a  serious  drawback  unless 
it  is  remedied  in  the  introduction :  we  shall  perhaps  find 
all  the  observations  brought  together  there  into  one  system, 
with  justificatory  references  to  each  of  the  notices  in 
particular. 

Bissing's  criticisms  are  always  well  justified :  they 
testify  to  a  mature  taste  or  a  sure  tact,  and  there  are  very 
few  with  which  experts  would  not  willingly  agree.  Here 
and  there,  however,  I  must  make  some  reservations,  for 
example,  with  regard  to  the  Chephren  of  Gizeh.  After 
discussing  at  length  Borchardt's  reasons  for  attributing 
it  to  a  Saite  school,  and  refuting  them,  Bissing  declares 
that  it  is  perhaps  a  late  copy  of  a  work  contemporary  with 
the  Pharaoh.  I  recently  had  occasion  to  study  it  closely 
in  order  to  determine  the  position  in  the  Museum  best 
suited  to  it,  and  to  decide  the  height  of  the  plinth  on 
which  it  should  be  placed.  I  went  over  Borchardt's 
arguments  and  Bissing's  hypotheses  one  after  the  other  and 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  date  assigned  by  Mariette 
at  the  moment  of  its  discovery  is  the  only  admissible 
one.  The  archaeological  details  belong  to  the  Memphian 
age,  and  the  peculiarities  of  style  which  Bissing  points  out, 
and  which  actually  exist,  are  not  sufficiently  strongly 
marked  to  justify  its  attribution  to  a  later  epoch.  I  only 
see  in  them  the  divergences  which,  in  every  age,  mark 
works  coming  from  different  and  perhaps  rival  studios. 
The  artists  who  cut  the  doubles  in  diorite  destined  for 
the  pyramid  of  the  Pharaoh,  did  not  certainly  have  the 
same  masters  as  those  to  whom  we  owe  the  Chephren 
in  alabaster  and  the  royal  statuettes  of  Mitrahineh : 
the  difference  of  origin  sufficiently  explains  why  they 
do  not  resemble  each  other.    I  fear  that  in  criticizing 

24 


Egyptian  Statuary 


certain  sculptures  Borchardt  and  others  were  governed 
in  spite  of  themselves  by  the  ideas  that  long  prevailed 
on  the  uniformity  and  monotony  of  Egyptian  art.  It 
seemed  to  them  that  at  one  and  the  same  period  the 
composition  and  inspiration  must  always  remain  identical, 
and  wherever  they  did  not  harmonize,  the  fact  was  attri- 
buted solely  to  an  interval  in  time.  But  we  must 
accustom  ourselves  to  think  that  things  did  not  go 
differently  with  the  Egyptians  than  with  the  moderns. 
In  a  city  like  Memphis  there  was  more  than  one  studio, 
and  they  all  possessed  their  traditions,  their  affectations, 
their  style,  which  distinguished  them  from  each  other, 
and  which  are  found  in  their  work  like  a  trade-mark. 
Some  errors  of  classification  will  be  avoided  in  the  futme 
if  we  can  be  persuaded  to  recognize  that  many  of 
the  peculiarities  that  we  begin  to  note  on  statues  and 
bas-reliefs  may  be  the  mannerisms  of  the  school  to 
which  they  belong,  and  are  not  always  indications  of 
relative  age. 

The  care  that  Bissing  has  taken  to  render  what  is  due  to 
each  of  the  experts  who  discovered  a  piece  or  spoke  of  it, 
deserves  the  more  praise  since  many  Egyptologists  of  the 
present  generation  have  adopted  the  attitude  of  ignoring 
what  has  been  said  or  written  before  them.  They  seem 
to  insinuate  to  their  readers  that  archaeology,  religion, 
grammar,  history,  nothing  indeed  that  they  touch  on, 
has  ever  been  studied  before,  and  that  the  bibliography 
of  a  subject  begins  with  the  first  essay  they  have  devoted 
to  it.  Although  the  past  of  Egyptology  is  so  short,  it  is 
a  difficult  subject  to  know,  and  it  is  not  surprising  if 
Bissing  has  misrepresented  some  features  or  ignored  others. 
For  example,  he  attributes  the  merit  of  recognizing  in 
the  animal's  tail  that  the  kings  attach  to  their  back,  not 

25 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

a  lion's  tail  but  a  jackal's  ^  to  Wiedemann ;  I  do  not 
know  if  I  was  the  first,  but  I  think  that  I  certainly  stated 
this  before  Wiedemann,  t  A  little  farther  on,  I  regret 
that  Bissing  was  not  acquainted  with  my  notice  of  the 
statue  of  Montouhotpou  in  the  Musee  Egyptien  ;  \  I  am 
curious  to  know  if  he  accepts  my  explanation  of  the  dis- 
proportion between  the  feet,  legs,  and  bust.  It  seems  to 
me  that  it  was  not  intended  to  be  on  the  same  level 
as  the  spectator,  but  that  it  ought  to  be  placed  in  a 
naos,  on  a  fairly  high  platform  which  could  be  reached 
by  a  staircase  in  front :  seen  from  below,  foreshortened, 
the  effect  of  the  perspective  would  redeem  the  exaggera- 
tion of  form  and  re-establish  the  balance  between  the 
parts.  It  seems  also  that  Bissing  was  not  acquainted 
with  the  part  of  the  Musee  in  which  this  Montouhotpou 
is  discussed,  for  he  does  not  refer  to  it  again  with  regard 
to  the  Amenemhait  III  discovered  by  Flinders  Petrie 
at  Fayoum.  §  Farther  on  again,  it  would  have  been  in 
keeping  to  note  that  Legrain  found  the  debris  of  a 
statuette  in  black  granite  in  the  mud  of  the  favissa  at 
Karnak,  which  so  closely  resembles  the  admirable  Ramses 
II  of  Turin  that  it  might  almost  be  the  replica  or  a 
sort  of  original  rough  model.  ||  Unfortunately  the  head 
is  wanting,  but  we  have  been  almost  entirely  success- 
ful in  restoring  the  body :  if  it  is  not  by  the  same 
sculptor  who  took  such  pleasure  in  modelling  the  Turin 
statue,  it  comes  from  the  same  royal  studio.    The  few 

*  Bissing,  II.    Plate  with  the  name  of  King  Athotis,  note  6. 
f  I  even  noted  the  existence  of  one  of  these  tails  in  wood  in  the 
Marseilles  Museum  (Catalogue,  p.  92,  No.  279). 

I  Musee  Egyptien,  vol.  ii.,  PI.  IX-X  and  pp.  25-30. 
§  Ibid.,  vol.  ii.,  PL  XV,  pp.  41-45. 

II  Maspero,  Guide  to  the  Cairo  Museum,  1906,  pp.  156-7, 
No.  550. 

26 


Egyptian  Statuary 


differences  to  be  noted  between  them  arise  solely  from 
the  inequality  of  the  stature  :  it  was  necessary  to  simplify 
certain  details  or  to  suppress  them  in  the  smallest  of 
the  statues. 

These  examples  show  that  there  is  nothing  very 
serious  in  the  omissions  and  negligences :  we  are  sur- 
prised not  that  there  should  be  some,  but  that  among 
such  a  mass  of  references  there  are  not  more.  I  might 
perhaps  disagree  with  some  of  the  theories  or  points 
of  doctrine  Bissing  constantly  advances,  but  I  will 
wait  to  do  so  until  he  has  elaborated  into  a  system  the 
elements  so  abundantly  spread  through  the  notices.  But 
there  is  one  criticism  I  will  make  now :  he  scarcely 
mentions  the  schools  into  which  Egypt  was  divided,  so 
that  we  are  tempted  to  conclude  that,  like  so  many  con- 
temporary archaeologists,  he  believes  in  the  existence  of 
one  sole  school,  which  worked  in  an  almost  uniform 
manner  over  the  whole  of  Egypt  at  one  time.  It  is, 
however,  certain  that  there  were  always  several  schools 
on  the  banks  of  the  Nile,  each  of  which  possessed  its 
traditions,  its  designs,  its  method  of  interpreting  the 
costume  or  the  pose  of  individuals,  the  works  of  which 
have  a  sufficiently  special  physiognomy  to  admit  of  their 
being  easily  separated  into  their  different  groups.  Here, 
again,  it  seems  to  me  that  sometimes  varieties  of  execu- 
tion which  are  the  result  of  the  teaching  are  taken  to 
be  signs  of  age,  and  that  pieces  which  are  contemporary 
within  a  few  years,  but  which  proceed  from  distinct 
schools,  are  spread  over  centuries.  I  have  not  discovered 
Bissing  in  such  errors  :  his  natural  insight  and  his  know- 
ledge of  the  monuments  preserved  him  from  making 
them.  I  wish,  however,  that  he  had  touched  on  the 
matter  more  definitely  than  he  has,  and,  after  letting  it 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

be  seen  in  several  places  that  he  admits  the  existence  of 
those  schools,  he  should  have  defined  their  characteristics 
in  accordance  as  the  progress  of  his  book  brought  their 
work  before  the  reader.  He  has  briefly  touched  on  the 
matter  in  regard  to  the  sphinxes  of  Tanis  and  the  statue 
of  Amenemhait  III,  but  he  might,  for  example,  have 
seized  the  opportunity  of  the  Montouhotpou  in  order  to 
demonstrate  the  tendencies  of  Theban  art  at  its  birth ;  he 
could  have  followed  them  in  their  evolution,  and  the 
Amenothes  I  of  Turin  might  perhaps  have  served  to 
teach  us  how  those  tendencies  were  developed  or  modified 
between  the  beginning  of  the  first  Theban  Empire  and 
that  of  the  second.  A  passage  in  the  notice  of  the  so- 
called  Hyksos  sphinxes  leads  me  to  hope  that  he  will  do 
this  for  the  Tanite  school  in  regard  to  the  celebrated 
Bearers  of  offerings  :  I  greatly  wish  that  I  may  not  be 
disappointed  in  my  hope. 

Ill 

As  far  as  I  can  judge  there  were  at  least  four  large 
schools  of  sculpture  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile  :  at  Memphis, 
Thebes,  Hermopolis,  and  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
delta.  I  have  attempted  farther  on  to  sketch  the 
history  and  define  the  principal  characteristics  of  the 
Theban  school ;  I  shall  only  refer  to  it  as  far  as  it  is 
necessary  to  make  clear  in  what  it  is  distinguished  from 
the  three  others. 

And  to  begin  with,  it  is  probable  that  the  first  of 
those  in  date,  the  Memphian,  is  merely  the  prolongation 
and  continuation  of  a  previous   Thinite  school.    If  I 

Revue  de  VArt  Ancien  et  Moderne,  1906,  vol.  x.,  pp.  241-52, 
337-48  ;  cf.  Chap.  X.  of  the  present  volume. 

28 


Egyptian  Statuary 

compare  the  few  objects  of  real  art  that  have  come  to 
us  from  the  Thinites  with  parallel  works  of  which  the 
necropolises  of  Gizeh,  Saqqarah  and  the  Fayoum  have 
restored  to  us  so  many  examples,  I  am  struck  by  the 
resemblances  in  inspiration  and  technique  that  exist 
between  the  two.  We  have  no  statues  originating  from 
Thinis  itself,  but  the  stelas,  the  amulets  in  alto-relievo, 
the  fragments  of  minute  furniture  discovered  in  the  tombs 
of  Omm-el-Gaab  find  their  exact  counterpart  in  similar 
pieces  that  come  from  the  excavations  of  Abousir-el- 
Malak  or  of  Meidoum  and  from  the  sub-structure  of 
Memphian  residences.  I  think  I  see  that  at  the  beginning 
there  were  mediocre  workmen  in  the  plain  of  the 
Pyramids  capable,  however,  of  sculpturing,  ill  or  well,  a 
statue  of  a  man  seated  or  standing :  to  those  men  1 
attribute  the  statue  No.  1  in  the  Cairo  Museum,  the 
Matonou  (Amten)  of  Berlin,  the  Sapoui  (Sepa)  of  the 
Louvre,  and  a  few  other  lesser  ones.  The  same  defects 
are  to  be  seen  in  all :  the  head  out  of  proportion  to 
the  body,  the  neck  ungraceful,  the  shoulders  high,  the 
bust  summarily  rough-hewn  and  without  regard  to  the 
dimensions  of  each  part,  the  arms  and  legs  heavy,  thick, 
angular.  Their  roughness  and  awkwardness  compared 
with  the  beautiful  appearance  of  the  two  statues  of 
Meidoum,  which  are  almost  contemporary  with  them, 
would  astonish  us  if  we  did  not  think  that  the  latter, 
commissioned  for  relatives  of  Sanofraoui,  proceed  from 
the  royal  workshops.  The  transference  of  the  capital  to 
Memphis,  or  rather  to  the  district  stretching  from  the 
entrance  into  the  Fayoum  to  the  fork  of  the  delta, 
necessarily  resulted  in  impoverishing  Thinis- Abydos  ;  the 
stone-cutters,  architects,  statuaries,  and  masons  accom- 
panied the  court,  and  planted  the  traditions  and  teaching 

29 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


of  their  respective  fatherlands  in  their  new  homes. 
According  to  what  is  seen  ;;in  the  tombs  of  Meidoum, 
the  latest  Thinite  style,  or  rather  the  transition  style  of 
the  Ilird  Dynasty,  presents  exactly  the  same  character- 
istics as  the  perfect  style  of  the  IVth,  Vth,  and  Vlth 
Dynasties,  but  with  a  less  stiff  manner.  The  pose  of  the 
persons  and  the  silhouettes  of  the  animals  are  already 
schematized  and  encircled  in  the  lines  which  will  enclose 
them  almost  to  the  end  of  Egyptian  civilization,  but  the 
detail  is  freer,  and  keeps  very  close  to  reality.  The 
tendency  is  perceived  only  in  the  roundness  and  supple- 
ness that  prevails  from  the  time  of  Cheops  and  Chephren. 
The  Memphites  sought  to  idealize  their  models  rather 
than  to  make  a  faithful  copy  of  them,  and  while  re- 
specting the  general  resemblance,  desired  to  give  the 
spectator  an  impression  of  calm  majesty  or  of  gentleness. 
Their  manner  was  adopted  at  Thinis  by  a  counter-shock, 
and  it  may  be  said  that  from  the  IVth  to  the  XX  Vlth 
Dynasty  Abydos  remained  almost  a  branch  of  the 
Memphian  school,  which,  however,  grew  out  of  it.  The 
productions  only  differ  from  those  of  the  Memphites  in 
subordinate  points,  except  during  the  XlXth  Dynasty, 
when  Setoui  I  and  Ramses  II  summoned  Theban 
sculptors  there,  and  for  some  years  it  became,  artistically, 
a  fief  of  Thebes. 

If  we  would  indicate  in  one  word  the  character  of  this 
Thinito-Memphian  art,  we  should  say  that  it  resides  in 
an  idealism  of  convention  as  opposed  to  the  realism  of 
Theban  art.  Thanks  to  the  fluctuations  of  political  life 
which  alternately  made  Memphis  and  Thebes  the  capitals 
of  the  whole  kingdom,  the  aesthetics  of  the  two  cities 
spread  to  the  neighbouring  towns,  and  did  not  allow 
them  to  form  an  independent  art :    Heracleopolis,  Beni- 

30 


Egyptian  Statuary 

Hassan,  Assiout,  Abydos  took  after  Memphis,  while  the 
Said  and  Nubia,  from  Denderah  to  Napata,  remained 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  Thebes.  An  original  school 
arose,  however,  in  one  place,  and  persisted  for  a  fairly 
long  time,  in  Hermopolis  Magna,  the  city  of  Thot.  We 
observe  there,  from  the  end  of  the  Ancient  Empire,  sculptors 
who  devoted  themselves  to  expressing  with  a  scrupulous 
naturalism,  and  often  with  an  intentional  seeking  after  ugli- 
ness, the  bearing  of  individuals  and  the  movement  of  groups. 
We  should  observe  with  what  humour  they  interpreted 
the  extremes  of  obesity  and  emaciation  in  man  and  beast, 
in  the  two  tombs  called  the  fat  and  the  lean.  The  region 
where  they  flourished  is  so  little  explored  that  it  is  still 
unknown  how  long  their  activity  practised  a  continuous 
style :  it  was  at  its  best  under  the  first  Theban  Empire, 
at  Bercheh,  at  Beni-Hassan,  at  Cheikh-Said,  but  the  period 
at  which  it  seems  to  me  to  be  most  in  evidence  was  at  the 
end  of  the  XVIIIth  Dynasty,  under  the  heretic  Pharaohs. 
When  Amenothes  IV  founded  his  capital  of  Khouitatonou, 
if,  as  is  probable,  he  settled  some  Theban  masters  there,  he 
would  certainly  have  utilized  the  studios  of  Hermopolis. 
The  scenes  engraved  on  the  tombs  of  El-Tell  and  El- Amarna 
are  due  to  the  same  spirit  and  the  same  teaching  as  those 
of  the  fat  and  lean  tombs ;  there  are  similar  deforma- 
tions of  the  human  figure  bordering  on  caricature,  the 
same  suppleness  and  sometimes  the  same  violence  in 
the  gestures  and  attitudes.  In  a  number  of  portraits  the 
Theban  importation  prevails,  but  the  cavalcades,  proces- 
sions, royal  audiences,  popular  scenes,  must  be  attributed 
to  the  Hermopolitans,  for  their  inspiration  and  execution 
present  so  striking  a  contrast  to  those  of  analogous 
pictures  that  adorn  the  walls  of  Louxor  or  Karnak.  The 
fall  of  the  little  Atonian  Dynasty  stopped  their  activity; 

31 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


deprived  of  the  vast  commissions  which  opened  a  new  field 
for  their  enterprise,  they  fell  back  into  their  provincial 
routine,  and  we  have  not  yet  enough  documents  to  tell  us 
what  their  successors  became  in  the  course  of  the  centuries. 

In  the  delta  two  fairly  different  styles  may  be  seen 
from  the  beginning.  In  the  east,  at  Tanis  and  in  its 
neighbourhood,  there  is,  at  the  beginning  of  the  first 
Theban  Empire,  a  veritable  school,  the  productions  of 
which  possess  such  an  individual  physiognomy  that 
Mariette  did  not  hesitate  to  attribute  them  to  the 
Shepherd  Kings :  since  the  works  of  Golenischeff  it  is 
known  that  the  so-called  Hyksos  sphinxes  are  of 
Amenemhait  III,  and  that  they  belong  to  the  second 
half  of  the  Xllth  Dynasty.  This  Tanite  school  is  per- 
petuated through  the  ages ;  it  was  still  flourishing  under 
the  XXIst  and  XXIInd  Dynasties,  as  is  proved  by  the 
fine  group  of  bearers  of  offerings  in  the  Cairo  Museum. 
The  predominant  features  are  the  energy  and  harshness 
of  the  modelling,  especially  of  the  human  face :  its 
masters  have  copied  a  type,  and  modes  of  coiffure  belong- 
ing, as  Mariette  formerly  pointed  out,  to  the  half-savage 
populations  of  Lake  Menzaleh,  the  Egyptians  in  the 
marshes  of  Herodotus.  It  seems  to  me  that  their  manner 
is  still  to  be  noted  in  the  Graeco-Roman  period  in  the 
statues  of  princes  and  priests  that  we  have  in  the  Cairo 
Museum :  the  technical  skill,  however,  is  less  than  in  the 
sphinxes  and  the  bearers  of  offerings.  The  centre  and 
west  of  the  delta,  on  the  other  hand,  came  under  the 
influence  of  Memphis,  as  far  as  we  can  judge  from 
the  rare  existing  fragments  belonging  to  the  Ancient 
Empire.  Under  the  Thebans  the  dependence  is  clear, 
and  all  that  comes  from  those  regions  differs  in  nothing 
from  what  we  have  from  the  Memphian  necropolises. 

32 


Egyptian  Statuary 


Only  in  the  Ethiopian  period,  and  under  the  influence 
of  the  successors  of  Bocchoris,  is  a  Saite  school  revealed 
to  us,  which,  borrowing  its  general  composition  from  the 
Memphian  school,  comes  closer  to  nature  and  impresses 
an  individual  stamp  on  certain  elements  of  the  human 
figure  that  until  then  had  been  handled  in  a  loose,  so  to 
say,  an  abstract  fashion.  The  modelling  of  the  face  is  as 
full  of  expression  as  in  the  fine  works  of  the  Theban 
school,  but  with  greater  finish  and  less  harsh  effects ;  the 
ravages  of  old  age,  wrinkles,  crows'-feet,  flabbiness  of 
flesh,  thinness,  are  all  reproduced  with  a  care  unusual  in 
preceding  generations ;  the  skull,  indeed,  is  so  minute  in 
detail  that  it  might  almost  be  called  an  anatomical  study. 
This  impulse  towards  skilled  realism,  begun  by  instinct  in 
the  heart  of  the  school,  became  accentuated  and  accelerated 
by  contact  with  the  Hellenes,  who  from  the  time  of 
Psammetichus  I  swarmed  in  the  provinces  of  the  delta. 
Certain  bas-reliefs  of  Alexandria  and  Cairo,  the  date  of 
which  is  assigned  to  the  reign  of  Nectanebo  II,  which 
I  should  like  to  place  in  that  of  one  of  the  first  Ptolemies,"^ 
may  be  regarded  as  extant  witnesses  of  a  kind  of  com- 
posite art  analogous  to  that  which  was  developed  two 
centuries  later  at  Alexandria  or  at  Memphis,  and  of 
which  the  Cairo  Museum  possesses  some  rare  examples. 

It  should  be  clearly  understood  that  I  do  not  claim 
to  put  the  complete  result  of  my  study  of  the  schools, 
the  presence  of  which  in  Ancient  Egypt  is  now  con- 
firmed, in  these  few  lines.  I  am  only  anxious  to  point 
out  the  part  played  by  them  in  historic  times,  and  the 
errors  into  which  those  who  have  written  the  history  of 
Egyptian  art  without  suspecting  their  existence,  or  with- 
out taking  into  consideration  what  we  do  know  of  them, 

*  Musee  Egyptien^  vol.  ii.,  pp.  90-2. 

33  c 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


have  fallen.  Bissing  does  not  ignore  them,  and  is  doubt- 
less waiting  to  criticize  them  in  his  Introduction.  He  has 
so  much  material  that  it  will  be  easy  for  him  to  rectify 
my  hypotheses,  and  to  confirm  them  where  necessary ; 
in  that  way  his  book  will  gain  by  being  no  longer  a  mere 
collection  of  monuments  each  described  as  an  isolated 
piece,  but  a  veritable  treatise  on  sculpture,  or  at  least  on 
Egyptian  statuary. 

I  shall  be  sincerely  sorry  if  he  fails  in  that  particular, 
but  even  so,  I  should  feel  it  right  to  declare  that  he  has  come 
honourably  out  of  an  enterprise  in  which  he  had  no  prede- 
cessors. The  few  plates  that  I  inserted  a  quarter  of  a  century 
ago  in  the  Monuments  de  VArt  Antique,  and  the  notices 
contained  in  the  parts  of  the  Musee  Egyptien  that  have 
already  appeared,  afforded  both  experts  and  amateurs  a 
foretaste  of  the  surprises  that  Egypt  has  in  store  in  the 
matter  of  art ;  they  have  been  too  few,  and  have  related 
to  subjects  too  scattered  in  point  of  time,  to  produce  a 
body  of  doctrine.  But  here,  on  the  contrary,  nearly  two 
hundred  pieces  are  available,  classified  according  to  the 
order  of  the  Dynasties,  and  for  the  most  part  unpublished, 
or  better  reproduced  than  in  the  past.  Each  will  be 
accompanied  by  an  analysis  in  which  the  researches  previ- 
ously connected  with  it  will  be  set  forth  and  discussed  ; 
for  the  first  time  Egyptologists  and  the  general  public 
will  have  the  artistic  and  critical  apparatus  required  for 
judging  the  value  of  the  principal  pieces  of  Egyptian 
statuary  before  their  eyes  and  in  their  hands.  Those  who 
know  the  amount  of  the  literature  existing  on  Egyptology, 
and  how  scattered  it  is,  can  easily  imagine  the  patience 
and  bibliographical  that  Bissing  must  have  needed 
for  gathering  from  libraries  the  information  so  generously 
scattered  on  every  page  of  his  notices.    But  that  was 

34 


Egyptian  Statuary 


only  the  least  part  of  his  task ;  the  appreciation  of  the 
objects  themselves  demanded  of  him  an  ever  alert  atten- 
tion and  a  continuous  tension  of  mind  which  would 
promptly  have  exhausted  a  man  less  devoted  to  the 
minutiae  of  artistic  observation.  In  other  branches  of  the 
science,  the  materials  have  for  the  most  part  been  so  often 
and  so  repeatedly  kneaded  that  nearly  always  half  of  the 
work  has  been  already  done  ;  here,  nothing  of  that  sort  exists, 
and  in  many  cases  Bissing  has  dealt  with  objects  that  he 
was  the  first  to  know,  and  of  which  no  previous  study 
had  been  attempted.  That  he  is  sometimes  weary,  and 
that  here  and  there  his  opinions  may  be  controverted,  he 
willingly  confesses.  But  what  surprises  me  is  how  very 
rarely  it  is  necessary  to  upset  them,  even  partially. 

I  hope  then  that  we  shall  not  have  to  wait  too  long 
for  the  completion  of  this  admirable  work.  May  I  ven- 
ture to  add  that  after  the  present  edition,  which  is  an 
edition  de  luxe,  a  popular  edition  would  be  welcome  ? 
Egyptologists  like  myself  are  condemned  to  pay  such  large 
sums  for  our  books  that  the  price  of  these  "  Denkmaler " 
does  not  alarm  us,  but  the  fact  has  greater  importance 
for  others.  A  reproduction  in  a  smaller  format,  and  less 
expensive,  would  greatly  help  to  spread  the  knowledge 
of  Egyptian  art  among  classes  of  readers  whom  the  book 
in  its  present  form  will  not  reach. 


35 


II 


SOME  PORTRAITS  OF  MYCERINUS* 

It  has  long  been  a  debatable  question  if  the  Egyptian 
statues  of  kings  and  private  individuals  can  be  regarded  as 
faithful  portraits  or  as  merely  approximate  to  their  originals. 
No  one  has  ever  denied  that  their  authors  desired  to  make 
them  as  like  as  possible,  but  we  hesitate  to  believe  that  they 
succeeded  in  doing  so.  The  air  of  uniformity  lent  them  by 
the  repeated  employment  of  the  same  expressions  and 
the  same  postures  encouraged  the  notion  that,  judging 
themselves  incapable  of  exactly  transcribing  the  details  of 
bodily  form  or  physiognomy  proper  to  each  individual,  the 
sculptors  decided  that  such  details  were  not  necessary  for 
the  kind  of  service  to  which  the  statues  were  destined  :  they 
considered  that  the  task  entrusted  to  them  was  sufficiently 
fulfilled  if  the  soul  or  the  double  for  which  these  statues 
provided  an  imperishable  body  recognized  in  them 
enough  of  the  perishable  body  to  enable  them  to  attach 
themselves  to  it  without  hurt  in  the  course  of  their 
posthumous  existence.  The  study  of  the  monuments  has 
dissipated  those  doubts.  Any  one  who  has  carefully  handled 
one  of  the  Saite  heads,  the  skull  and  face  of  which  present 
such  clearly  individual  characteristics,  must  acknowledge 
that  so  many  details  noted  with  such  felicitous  care  indicate 

*  From  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  7noderne^  1912,  vol.  xxxi., 
pp.  241-54. 

36 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 

an  absolute  intention  of  transmitting  the  exact  appearance 
of  the  model  to  posterity.  And  if,  proceeding  forward,  we 
reach  the  second  Theban  period,  we  shall  soon,  thanks  to 
the  chances  which  have  delivered  to  us  the  well-preserved 
corpses  of  about  fifty  princes  and  princesses,  recognize  the 
success  with  which  the  royal  studios  perpetuated  in  stone 
the  effigies  of  their  contemporaries.  The  profile  of  Setoui  I 
photographed  in  his  coffin  would  coincide  line  for  line  with 
that  of  his  bas-reliefs  of  Karnak  or  Abydos  were  it  not  for 
the  thinness  resulting  from  embalmment.  Let  us  go  back 
eight  or  ten  centuries  and  see  how  the  master  sculptors  of 
the  first  Theban  period  treated  their  Pharaohs.  The  statues 
of  Amenemhait  III  and  of  Sanouosrit  have  so  personal  a 
note  that  we  should  be  wrong  to  imagine  they  could  be 
anything  but  a  sincere,  almost  a  brutal  likeness.  The  two 
Chephren  of  the  Cairo  Museum  were  not  long  ago  alone  in 
suggesting  to  us  the  conviction  that  the  Memphian  times 
yielded  nothing  in  this  matter  of  resemblance  to  ages  farther 
removed  from  us  ;  the  recent  discovery  of  ten  statues  of 
Mycerinus  prevents  any  further  doubt. 

Most  of  them  have  not  left  Egypt.  The  first  that  came 
to  us  was  acquired  by  purchase  in  1888,  with  four  statuettes 
of  Naousirriya,  of  Mankahorou,  of  Chephren,  and  perhaps 
of  Cheops.  According  to  the  information  collected  at  the 
time  by  Grebaut,  they  were  found  together,  two  or  three 
weeks  before,  by  fellahs  of  Mit-Rahineh  under  the  ruins 
of  a  little  brick  building  situated  at  the  east  of  what  was 
formerly  the  sacred  lake  of  the  temple  of  Phtah  at 
Memphis.  That  was  certainly  not  their  original  place ; 
they  had  probably  each  adorned  first  the  funerary  chapel 
annexed  to  the  pyramid  of  its  sovereign :  their  transference 
to  the  town  and  their  reunion  in  the  place  where  they  were 
discovered  are  not  earlier  than  the  reign  of  the  last  Saites 

37 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

or  the  first  Ptolemies.  It  was  then,  in  fact,  that  hatred  of 
foreign  domination  having  exalted  the  love  of  all  that  was 
peculiarly  Egyptian  in  the  eyes  of  the  people,  reverence  for 
the  glorious  Pharaohs  of  former  ages  revived ;  their  priest- 
hoods were  reorganized,  and  they  again  received  the  worship 
to  which  centuries  of  neglect  had  disaccustomed  them. 
None  of  our  figures  are  life-size,  and  the  Mycerinus  in 
diorite,  which  is  not  one  of  the  smallest,  is  scarcely  21^  inches 
in  height.  It  is  enthroned  on  a  cubical  block  with  the 
impassibility  that  the  Chephren  has  made  familiar  to  us ; 
the  bust  is  stiff,  the  arms  rest  on  the  thighs,  he  looks  straight 
before  him,  his  face  expressionless,  as  was  imposed  on 
Pharaoh  by  etiquette,  while  the  crowd  of  courtiers  and 
vassals  filed  past  at  his  feet :  if  his  name,  engraved  on  the 
sides  of  his  seat  to  the  right  and  left  of  his  legs,  had  not  told 
who  he  was,  we  should  have  guessed  it  from  his  bearing. 
The  composition,  although  not  the  best  imaginable,  is 
good  :  but  the  head  makes  a  poor  effect  in  relation  to  the 
torso,  a  defect  always  at  first  ascribed  to  the  heedlessness  of 
the  sculptor.  But  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  face  somewhat 
recalled  that  of  two  of  the  other  Pharaohs,  a  fact  to  be 
explained  by  the  relationship,  the  second,  Chephren,  being 
the  father  of  Mycerinus,  and  the  third,  probably  Cheops, 
his  grandfather.  That  is  a  reason  for  presuming  that  they 
are  portraits,  but  are  they  authentic  portraits  ?  Several 
Berlin  Egyptologists  whose  natural  ingenuity  encouraged 
them  to  revise  Mariette's  criticisms  on  art,  thought  to  dis- 
cern in  certain  details  of  the  costume  and  ornamentation  a 
proof  that  if  they  were  not  figures  of  pure  imagination,  they 
were  at  least  copies  of  ancient  originals  freely  executed 
imder  one  of  the  Saite  Dynasties,  and  their  theory,  although 
opposed  by  experts  who  had  a  longer  experience,  dis- 
concerted the  majority.    It  was  soon  upset  by  facts,  but,  as 

38 


THE   MYCERINUS  OF  MIT-KAHINEH. 
Diorite.    Cairo  Museum. 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 


often  happens,  the  consequences  deduced  from  it  survived 
by  force  of  habit.  Many  of  us  feared  for  some  years  after 
to  be  asserting  too  nmch,  to  declare  openly  that  our 
Mycerinus  was  what  we  had  entitled  him  on  the  faith  of 
his  inscription,  the  real  Mycerinus. 

We  did  not  do  so  until  1908,  when  Reisner  and  his 
Americans,  excavating  at  Gizeh  round  about  the  third 
pyramid,  brought  to  light  monuments  that  with  the  best 
will  in  the  world  no  one  could  assign  to  any  other  epoch 
than  that  of  Mycerinus.  It  seems  that  the  fame  of  piety 
which  popular  story  ascribed  to  him  was  not  wholly 
unmerited,  at  least  as  far  as  his  own  divinity  is  concerned, 
for  with  the  elements  of  a  voluminous  funerary  equipment 
in  all  kinds  of  stones,  the  workmen  brought  out  of  the  ruins 
of  the  chapel,  fragments  of  a  multitude  of  statues  in  alabaster, 
schist,  limestone,  and  rare  breccia.  Among  them  were 
some  unfinished  or  scarcely  shaped  out,  for  the  sovereign 
having  died  while  they  were  being  fashioned,  the  works, 
according  to  Oriental  custom,  had  been  immediately 
interrupted  and  the  workshops  abandoned  in  confusion. 

The  statues  which  were  already  finished  and  set  up 
in  their  places  were  overturned  at  some  unknown  period, 
perhaps  when  Saladin  dismantled  the  pyramids  to  build 
the  new  ramparts  and  citadel  of  Cairo,  and  the  fragments 
were  so  ill-treated  that  an  enormous  number  of  them 
have  disappeared.  Out  of  a  hundred  baskets  of  debris 
collected  by  the  Americans,  they  found  at  most,  besides 
five  or  six  intact  heads,  enough  to  put  together,  almost 
completely,  two  alabaster  statues.  The  best  of  the  heads 
is  in  the  Cairo  Museum,  and  it  has  sufficient  resemblance 
to  our  statuette  for  us  to  have  no  hesitation  in  recog- 
nizing Mycerinus,  even  if  the  place  whence  it  comes 
did  not  help  us  to  guess  it.    The  statue  that  the  find 

39 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


brought  us  is  seated,  but  the  block  on  which  it  is  sculptured 
is  not  perpendicular  to  its  base,  so  that  it  leans  slightly 
backward.  On  the  other  hand,  the  two  arms  being  cut 
between  the  armpit  and  the  hip,  the  accident  makes  it 
appear  at  first  glance  as  if  the  bust  is  too  narrow  for  its 
height.  But,  and  this  is  the  important  point,  the  head  is 
small,  so  small  that  the  head-dress,  in  spite  of  its  size,  is 
not  sufficient  to  correct  the  bad  effect  of  this  dispropor- 
tion between  its  smallness  and  the  amplitude  of  the 
shoulders.  The  fault  is  not  to  be  ascribed  to  the  artist's 
ignorance  and  lack  of  skill,  as  is  probably  done.  He  was 
not,  it  must  be  admitted,  a  man  of  talent,  but  he  knew 
his  business,  and  proved  it  by  the  general  quality  of  his 
work.  The  harmony  between  the  trunk  and  the  leg,  the 
muscles  of  the  chest,  the  texture  of  the  costume,  the 
modelling  of  the  knee  and  calf,  conform  to  the  a3sthetics 
of  the  time  ;  the  foot  and  ankle  are  particularized  with 
the  virtuosity  of  a  craftsman  skilled  in  all  the  subtleties 
of  his  calling.  So,  now,  returning  to  the  statuette  of  Mit- 
Rahineh,  the  technique  of  which  shows  it  to  proceed  not 
from  a  different  school  but  from  a  different  studio,  we 
shall  find  a  difficulty  in  imagining  that  two  sculptors 
would  each  have  fallen  into  so  great  an  error,  if  they  had 
not  seen  it  themselves  in  their  model.  Since  their  statues 
are  microcephalous,  Mycerinus  must  have  been  micro- 
cephalous almost  to  deformity. 

The  search  among  the  beds  of  fragments  of  stone  was 
continued.  A  few  weeks  before  it  was  finished,  at  the 
end  of  May,  1908,  it  produced  four  groups  in  schist,  the 
testimony  of  which  fully  confirmed  that  of  the  alabaster 
statues.  The  disposition  is  the  same,  with  very  slight 
divergences,  which  do  not  sensibly  modify  the  aspect  of 
the  pieces.    Three  persons  stand  side  by  side  against  a 

40 


ALABASTER   STATUE  OF  MYCERIXUS. 
Cairo  Museum. 

To  face  p. 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 

slab  17  to  23  inches  high.  Mycerinus  is  in  the  middle, 
his  left  foot  advanced,  the  waist-cloth  fluted  on  the  loins, 
and  on  his  forehead  the  white  cap  of  the  kingdom  of 
Upper  Egypt.  He  always  has  a  goddess  on  his  right,  a 
Hathor  moulded  in  the  sleeveless  smock  open  on  the 
chest,  and  on  her  hair  the  short  wig  and  the  coufieh. 
On  the  top  of  this  head-dress  she  wears  her  two  cow's 
horns  and  the  solar  disk.  In  one  of  the  groups  she  is 
walking,  her  arms  hanging  down  and  her  hands  laid  flat 
on  her  thighs ;  in  the  second,  she  embraces  him  with  her 
left  arm  and  presses  against  him  ;  in  the  third  she  holds 
his  right  hand  in  her  left.  The  last  of  the  figures  is 
sometimes  a  woman,  sometimes  a  man :  the  man,  who  is 
shorter  by  a  third  than  his  companions,  walks  forward 
swinging  his  arms ;  the  two  women  are  at  rest,  and  one  of 
them  puts  her  right  arm  round  the  king's  waist,  in 
symmetry  with  the  Hathor  on  the  left.  They  are 
geographical  entities,  nomes,  and  the  standards  on  their 
heads  tell  us  their  names  :  the  two  women  personify  the 
nomes  of  Sistrum  and  the  Dog,  the  man  that  of 
Oxyrrhinchus.  The  fragments  of  schist  under  which 
they  were  buried  assuredly  belong  to  other  groups  now 
destroyed,  but  how  many  of  them  were  there  in  the 
beginning  ?  The  decorative  theme  of  which  they  formed 
part  is  one  of  which  the  intention  is  grasped  at  the  first 
glance,  but  if  we  needed  a  commentary  to  explain  it,  the 
brief  legends  at  the  base  would  provide  the  material.  They 
inform  us,  in  fact,  that  our  Hathor  is  the  lady  of  tlie 
Canton  of  the  Sycomore,  and  that  the  nome  of  the  Dog, 
that  of  the  Sistrum,  that  of  Oxyrrhinchus,  bring  the 
sovereign  all  the  good  things  of  their  territory.  Mycerinus, 
in  his  quality  of  king  of  the  Said  and  of  the  delta,  had  a 
right  to  tribute  during  his  life,  and  to  offerings  after  his 

41 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


death  from  the  whole  country,  and  on  the  other  hand, 
Hathor,  lady  of  the  Sycomore,  is  the  patron  of  dead 
Osirians  in  the  Memphian  province  where  the  palaces 
and  tombs  of  the  Pharaohs  are.  It  was  natural  then 
that  she  should  serve  as  the  introducer  of  the  delegates 
of  the  nomes  when  they  came  to  pay  their  tribute  to 
the  common  master.  With  rich  private  individuals,  the 
operation  was  symbolized  on  the  walls  of  the  funerary 
chapels  by  long  processions  of  men  or  women  in  bas- 
relief,  each  of  whom  incarnated  one  of  the  domains 
charged  with  the  upkeep  of  the  tomb.  Here  it  was 
expressed  in  even  a  more  concrete  fashion  by  two  series 
of  groups  in  rondo-bosso,  which  were  probably  developed 
on  the  walls  in  one  of  the  court-yards  of  the  temple  of 
the  pyramid.  The  four  which  have  escaped  destruction 
belonged  to  the  series  of  the  Said,  as  is  proved  by  their 
names  and  the  head-dress  of  the  sovereign,  but  those  of 
the  delta  could  not  have  been  omitted  without  causing 
regrettable  privations  to  the  double  in  his  life  beyond 
the  tomb  ;  there  were  then  about  forty  in  all,  as  many 
as  there  were  nomes  in  the  whole  of  Egypt. 

The  excellence  of  those  that  have  survived  fills  us 
with  regret  for  those  that  are  lost.  At  the  instant  they 
emerged  from  the  earth,  they  preserved  something  of 
their  primitive  colouring,  but  contact  with  the  air  and 
light  speedily  deprived  them  of  it,  and  only  traces  re- 
main on  the  chest,  at  the  neck,  wrists,  waist,  places 
protected  by  the  customary  ornaments  of  people  of  high 
rank.  The  gold-leaf  with  which  the  necklaces  and 
bracelets  were  decorated  was  stolen  in  times  of  antiquity, 
but  the  thicker  layers  of  paint  on  which  they  were 
placed  preserve  their  contours  fairly  exactly.  It  would 
be  easy  for  us  to  restore  to  the  whole  the  aspect  it  had 

42 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 

when  fresh  and  new — a  light  yellow  complexion  for  the 
women,  and  red-brown  for  the  men,  black  hair,  blue  or 
white  head-dresses,  white  crowns,  and  garments  relieved 
by  the  tawny  brilliance  of  the  jewels.  In  pieces  where 
everything  is  so  minutely  calculated  for  reality,  it  is 
scarcely  probable  that  anything  is  the  effect  of  chance 
or  of  lack  of  skill ;  if  then  the  sovereign's  head  is  too 
small  it  is  because  it  was  so  in  reality.  In  fact,  the  lack 
of  proportion  with  the  rest  of  the  body  is  less  perceptible 
here  than  in  the  isolated  statues,  and  it  is  not  percep- 
tible at  the  first  glance  :  but  it  is  soon  recognized  when 
the  sovereign  is  compared  with  his  two  companions.  Not 
only  are  their  heads  larger  and  more  massive  than  his, 
but  it  would  seem  that  the  sculptor  desired  to  accentuate 
the  inequality  between  them  by  a  trick  of  his  craft:  he 
has  perceptibly  narrowed  their  shoulders,  and  the  contrast 
between  the  small  head  that  surmounts  the  vast  shoulders 
of  Mycerinus  with  the  two  large  heads  that  weight  the 
narrow  shoulders  of  the  acolytes,  emphasizes  the  de- 
formity that  the  placing  together  of  three  figures  on  the 
same  level  had  almost  concealed.  Study  of  the  schists 
leads  to  the  same  conclusion  as  that  formed  of  the 
alabasters.  It  is  the  real  JNIycerinus  that  contemporaries 
have  bound  themselves  to  transmit  to  posterity,  and  they 
have  spared  no  details  which  were  naturally  calculated 
to  make  us  better  acquainted  with  him.  \^^e  ha\  e  only 
to  analyse  their  works  to  see  him  stand  before  us  in  his 
habit  as  he  lived.  He  was  tall,  robust,  slender,  with 
long  legs,  powerful  shoulders  surmounted  by  a  small 
face,  an  athlete  with  the  head  almost  of  a  child.  In 
addition,  projecting  eyes,  big  ears,  a  short  nose,  the  tip 
turned  up,  a  sensual  mouth  with  full  lips,  a  chin 
receding  under  the  artificial  beard ;  the  expression  of  the 

43 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

face  is  benevolent,  even  weak.  In  vain  has  the  sculptor 
stiffened  the  backbone  and  the  neck,  thrown  out  the 
chest,  stretched  the  biceps,  clenched  the  fist,  and  im- 
mobilized the  features  into  a  hieratic  gravity :  he  has 
not  succeeded  in  inculcating  the  sovereign  majesty  that 
makes  our  Chephren  the  ideal  Pharaoh,  the  equal  of 
the  gods.  He  has  the  sanctimonious  appearance  of  a 
private  individual  of  good  family,  but  his  general  bearing 
is  below  his  condition.  We  could  easily  point  to  a  dozen 
statues,  his  neighbours  in  the  Cairo  Museum,  that  of 
Ranafir,  for  instance,  which  have  a  more  exalted  appear- 
ance and  a  prouder  mien. 

And  the  new  schist  group  that  Reisner  discovered 
during  the  winter  of  1909  has  not  made  any  change  in 
our  opinion  necessary.  This  time  Mycerinus  is  repre- 
sented with  his  wife ;  the  lower  portions  of  the  two 
figures  had  not  received  the  final  polish  when  death 
intervened,  but  those  of  the  upper  part  were  finished 
and  are  admirable.  Mycerinus  wears  the  head-dress  of 
the  ordinary  daft,  which  squarely  frames  the  face,  and 
his  features  are  those  with  which  we  have  become 
familiar  in  the  statues  described  above ;  eyes  starting 
from  his  head,  a  fixed  expression,  turned  up  nose,  a 
large,  loose  mouth,  the  lower  lip  protruding,  the 
physiognomy  of  a  man  of  the  middle  class  straining 
to  appear  dignified.  The  queen  does  not  appear  much 
more  noble,  but  in  looking  at  her  we  are  disposed  to 
think  that  she  had  more  intelligence  and  vivacity. 
We  should  not  say  that  she  was  exactly  smihng, 
but  a  smile  has  just  passed  over  her  face,  and  traces 
of  it  remain  on  her  lips  and  in  her  eyes.  She  has 
beautiful  round  cheeks,  a  little  turned-up  nose,  a  full 
chin,  full  lips  cleft  from  top  to  bottom  by  a  strongly 

44 


To  face  r-  i^- 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 

marked  furrow :  a  determined  expression  shows  itself 
between  her  narrow,  heavy  eyehds.  She  resembles  her 
husband,  a  fact  that  is  not  surprising,  since  unions 
between  brothers  and  sisters  were  not  only  tolerated 
but  commanded  by  custom ;  there  is  thus  every  chance 
that  the  couple  were  born  of  the  same  father  and 
mother ;  she  has  only  a  greater  appearance  of  strength 
than  he  has.  Custom  exacted  that,  when  a  husband 
and  wife  were  associated  in  a  group,  they  should  not 
be  placed  side  by  side  on  a  level  of  absolute  equality, 
but  that  the  woman  should  be  given  a  posture  or 
merely  a  gesture  implying  a  state  of  more  or  less 
affectionate  dependence  on  the  husband ;  she  crouched 
at  his  feet,  her  chest  against  his  knees,  or  her  arm  was 
round  his  waist  or  his  neck,  as  if  she  had  no  trust 
except  in  his  protection.  Here  the  queen's  gesture  is 
in  conformity  with  convention,  but  the  manner  of  its 
execution  contradicts  the  intention  of  submission :  she 
leans  less  against  the  Pharaoh  than  she  draws  him  close 
to  her,  and  looks  as  if  she  is  protecting  him  at  least  as 
much  as  he  is  protecting  her.  She  is  his  equal  in 
height,  and  even  if  she  is  more  slender  than  he  is,  as  is 
proper  to  her  sex,  her  shoulders  are  as  robust.  Does  it 
mean  that  the  sculptor  has  attributed  to  her  the  massive 
shoulders  of  a  man  ?  Not  at  all :  but  following  the 
example  of  his  colleagues  in  the  triads,  he  has  cheated 
a  little  in  order  to  dissimulate  the  defect  of  his  model. 
As  doubtless  he  would  not  have  liked  to  show  a  de- 
formed Pharaoh,  and  as  he  might  not  alter  features 
which,  after  all,  were  those  of  a  god,  he  has  made  the 
deformity  less  visible  by  taking  away  from  the  shoulders 
what  was  wanted  in  order  to  establish  a  sort  of  apparent 
equilibrium  between  the  parts,  and  so  we  are  brought 

45 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

back  by  a  fresh  detour  to  the  point  to  which  the  exami- 
nation of  the  alabasters  and  triads  had  led  us.  Let  us 
once  more  conclude  that  the  effigies  of  the  Memphian 
Pharaohs  and  their  subjects  were  real  portraits  of  the 
personages  they  claimed  to  reproduce. 

They  were  real,  but  not  realistic  unless  there  was  special 
necessity.    I  have  repeatedly  attempted  to  define  the  two 
chief  schools  of  Egyptian  sculpture,  the  Theban  and  the 
Memphian.    From  the  beginning  the  Theban  school  tends 
to  copy  the  model  brutally,  as  it  was  at  the  moment  when 
it  was  portrayed.    Take  the  statues  of  Sanouosrit  I  or  of 
Sanouosrit  III,  which  lately  came  to  the  Cairo  Museum. 
The  family  likeness  between  all  of  them  is  indubitable, 
but,  according  as  they  come  from  a  Theban  or  Memphian 
studio,  the  features  which  constitute  the  complete  re- 
semblance are  noted  in  such  divergent  ways  that  at  the 
first  glance  we  are  inclined  to  think  that  it  scarcely  exists. 
The  Thebans  scrupulously  marked  the  thinness  of  the 
cheeks,  the  hardness  of  the  eye,  the  harshness  of  the  mouth, 
the  heaviness  of  the  jaw,  and  have  exaggerated  rather  than 
diminished  those  points.    The  Memphians  do  not  neglect 
them,  but  have  treated  them  in  a  more  merciful  manner, 
and,  from  the  haggard  faces  in  which  the  rival  school  took 
pleasure,  have  brought  out  the  happy  smiling  expression 
that  its  own  traditions  ascribed  without  exception  to  all 
the  Pharaohs.    We  cannot  institute  comparisons  of  that 
kind  for  the  epoch  of  Mycerinus :  the  Theban  school,  if, 
as  is  probable,  it  was  then  in  existence,  still  sleeps  buried 
beneath  the  ruins,  and  we  know  nothing  belonging  to  it 
to  place  by  the  side  of  the  Memphian.    It  is  sufficient, 
however,  to  walk  through  the  rooms  of  the  Cairo  Museum 
reserved  for  it  to  be  convinced  that  if  the  Cheikh-el-Beled, 
the  Chephren  statues,  the  royal  couple  of  Meidoum,  the 
Ranafir  statues  are  portraits  and  likenesses,  they  are  at  the 

46 


MYCEKIXUS,   HATHOR,   AND  THE   NOME   OF  THE 
SISTRUM. 

Schist.    Cairo  ^Museum. 


MYCEKINUS   AND  HIS  WIFE  (DETAIL). 
Schist.    Boston  IMuseum, 


To  face  p.  46. 


Some  Portraits  of  Mycerinus 


same  time  idealized  portraits  according  to  the  formula, 
the  influence  of  which  we  have  seen  in  the  monuments  of 
the  Xllth  Dynasty.  Whatever  the  models  presented  that 
was  too  pronounced,  was  softened  in  order  to  give  them  the 
serene  bearing  fitting  the  imperishable  bodies  of  such  noble 
and  respectable  persons.  They  only  departed  from  this 
routine  when  there  were  monstrosities,  the  entire  suppres- 
sion of  which  would  have  been  fraught  with  danger  for  the 
immortality  of  the  subject,  as  in  the  case  of  the  two  dwarfs 
in  the  Cairo  Museum  ;  but  it  is  not  quite  certain  if  even 
in  those  cases  some  modification  of  the  ugliness  has  not 
been  contrived.  What  has  happened  to  Mycerinus  renders 
it  probable :  have  we  not  seen,  in  fact,  that  the  artist 
exerted  his  ingenuity  to  dissimulate  the  disturbing  exiguity 
of  the  head  by  an  artifice  ?  And  he  must  often  have 
taken  similar  liberties,  although  we  have  no  actual  means 
of  proving  it.  I  will  venture  to  assert  it  of  Chephren, 
although  almost  the  half  of  one  of  his  two  statues,  that 
in  green  serpentine,  is  a  restoration  by  Vassalli.  For  if 
we  compare  their  profiles,  we  notice  that  that  of  the 
serpentine  statue  is  weaker  than  that  of  the  diorite  statue : 
the  eye  is  smaller  and  the  chin  less  authoritative,  the  tip 
of  the  nose  recedes  a  little,  and  there  is  a  slight  resemblance 
with  Mycerinus.  The  lofty  dignity  which  I  noted  just 
now  as  appearing  in  the  father  in  contrast  to  the  son  may 
be  the  result  of  the  Memphians'  determination  to  idealize 
their  subjects  so  as  to  make  each  of  them  an  almost  abstract 
type  of  the  class  to  which  they  belonged. 

As  might  be  expected,  the  alabasters  of  Mycerinus 
are  a  long  way  from  equalling  the  schists.  Indeed, 
whenever  we  find  statues  of  a  person  in  different  materials, 
it  is  seldom  that  those  most  difficult  to  work  in  are  not 
also  the  best.  Petrie  concluded  that  in  all  periods  Egypt 
had  a  school  of  sculpture  in  limestone  and  soft  stones, 

47 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


and  one  in  granite  and  hard  stones.  But  who  would 
think  of  classifying  modern  sculptors  in  different  schools 
according  as  they  used  bronze  or  marble  ?  In  Egypt,  as 
in  later  times,  the  instruction  given  to  learners  prepared 
them  to  practise  the  complete  calling,  whatever  the 
special  branch  to  which  they  later  confined  themselves 
might  be,  but  as  the  handling  of  certain  stones  required 
a  more  extended  practice,  care  was  taken  in  the  workshops 
to  entrust  them  to  the  most  expert.  That  is  evidently 
what  happened  in  the  case  of  Mycerinus.  His  alabasters 
are  certainly  very  estimable ;  but  those  to  whom  we  owe 
them  were  not  skilled  virtuosi,  and  if  they  acquitted 
themselves  of  their  task  honourably,  they  only  produced 
ordinary  work.  Those  who  executed  the  schists  were 
much  more  skilled.  I  will  not  venture  to  assert  that 
they  entirely  triumphed  over  their  material :  the  bodies 
of  princes  and  gods  sculptured  in  matter  so  unyielding 
and  of  so  gloomy  a  tone  present  a  rigidity  of  contour 
which  we  feel  as  keenly  as  we  do  the  lack  of  colour 
which  would  enliven  them.  They  almost  repel  any  one 
who  sees  them  for  the  first  time,  but  the  repulsion  once 
overcome,  they  reveal  themselves  as  perfect  of  their  kind. 
The  artist  has  done  what  he  wished  with  the  ungrateful 
material,  and  has  handled  it  with  the  same  suppleness  as 
if  he  had  been  kneading  the  most  ductile  clay.  The 
women  are  especially  remarkable  with  their  full  round 
shoulders,  their  small  breasts  placed  low,  the  belly  strong 
and  well  designed,  the  thighs  full  and  graceful,  the  legs 
vigorous,  one  of  the  most  elegant  types  created  by 
Memphian  Egypt.  It  does  not  equal  the  diorite  Chephren, 
nor  the  Cheikh-el-Beled,  nor  the  Crouching  Scribe,  nor 
the  lady  of  Meidoum,  but  it  is  not  so  far  removed  from 
them,  and  few  pieces  take  so  high  a  rank  in  the  work  of 
the  old  Memphian  school. 

48 


MYCERINUS  AND  HIS  WIFE  (dETAIL). 
Schist.    Boston  Museum. 

To  face  p.  48. 


Ill 


A  SCRIBE'S  HEAD 
OF  THE  TVth  or  Vth  DYNASTY 

{The  Louvre) 

The  inventories  give  no  indication  of  the  origin  of 
this  head.  So  httle  was  its  source  suspected  that  for  a 
long  time  it  was  beheved  to  be  of  Peruvian  work  :  M.  de 
Longperier  with  his  usual  tact  restored  it  to  its  right- 
ful place  in  the  Egyptian  series.^  At  the  first  glance 
the  style  is  seen  to  be  that  of  the  ancient  INIemphian 
Empire :  it  has  evidently  been  detached  from  a  statue  found 
in  one  of  the  necropolises  of  Saqqarah.  The  absence  of 
the  plinth  and  the  parts  which  usually  bear  the  inscrip- 
tion prevents  us  from  knowing  the  name  of  the  individual 
it  represents,  a  scribe  contemporary,  or  very  nearly,  with  the 
celebrated  Crouching  Scribe.  A  narrow  and  somewhat 
receding  forehead,  a  long  prominent  eye  slightly  drawn 
up  towards  the  temples,  snub-nose,  thin  nostrils,  accen- 
tuated cheekbones,  thin  cheeks,  large  mouth  with  full 
lips,  a  firm  rounded  chin,  do  not  make  a  flattermg  portrait 
but  certainly  an  exact  one.  The  material  is  the  excellent 
limestone  of  Tourah  painted  bright  red :  the  technique 

*  It  is  mentioned  for  the  first  time  in  Emmanuel  de  Rouge's  Cata- 
logue, 1855,  under  No.  6  ;  it  is  placed  on  the  mantelpiece  in  the  "  Salle 
civile." 

49  D 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

shows  delicacy  and  skill  rare  even  at  that  period  of 
admirable  artists. 

Almost  all  the  statues  of  mere  private  individuals 
come  from  temples  or  tombs.  The  right  of  setting 
up  a  statue  in  the  temples  belonged  exclusively 
to  the  king;  so  the  greater  number  of  those  we  have 
offer  a  special  formula :  Gi^anted  as  a  favour  on  the 
part  of  the  king  to  a  son  of  so  and  so,"^  sometimes  too 
the  favour  is  qualified  as  g?^eat  or  very  great.  It  was 
then  by  some  exceptional  title,  in  reward  of  services 
rendered,  or  by  a  caprice  of  royalty,  that  an  Egyptian 
was  authorized  to  place  his  portrait  in  a  temple,  whether 
of  his  native  city  or  of  some  other  town,  to  the  god  for 
whom  he  professed  a  special  devotion.  The  great  feudal 
lords,  who  all  more  or  less  aspired  to  possess  royal  rights, 
sometimes  took  the  liberty  of  setting  up  a  statue  of 
themselves  without  the  preliminary  permission  of  Pharaoh  ; 
but  in  spite  of  these  usurpations  of  the  royal  prerogative, 
the  number  is  relatively  small.  Civil  wars,  foreign  inva- 
sions, the  ruin  of  towns,  the  destruction  of  idols  by  the 
Christians,  contributed  to  make  private  statues  coming 
from  temples  rare  in  our  museums,  t 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  those  that  come  from  ceme- 
teries are  very  numerous.  Every  tomb  that  was  somewhat 
cared  for  in  the  ancient  or  new  empire  contained  several 
which  represented  the  defunct  alone,  or  accompanied  by 
the  principal  members  of  his  family.  They  were  not 
always  placed  in  the  same  spot ;  in  the  IVth  Dynasty 
they  were  sometimes  placed  in  the  outer  court,  in  the 

*  See  good  examples  in  Mariette,  "  Karnak,"  PI.  YIII. 

f  This  is  no  longer  true  since  the  discovery  of  the  favissa  at  Karnak. 
The  Cairo  Museum  possesses  some  hundreds  of  statues  of  private  indi- 
viduals from  the  Theban  temple  of  Amon  (1912). 

50 


To  face  p.  50. 


A  Scribe's  Head 


open  air,  sometimes  also  in  the  chapel,  where  on  certain 
days  the  family  celebrated  the  worship  of  the  ancestor. 
Most  often  they  were  imprisoned  in  a  narrow  chamber, 
with  a  lofty  ceiling,  something  like  a  corridor,  and  for 
that  reason  called  Serddb  by  the  Arabs.  Sometimes  the 
Serddb  is  lost  in  the  masonry  and  does  not  communicate 
with  any  of  the  other  chambers.  Sometimes  it  is  con- 
nected with  the  funerary  chapel  by  a  sort  of  quadran- 
gular pipe,  so  small  that  a  hand  can  scarcely  be  inserted.^ 
The  priests  would  burn  incense  near  the  orifice,  pour 
libations,  present  offerings,  murmur  prayers,  and  every- 
thing was  supposed  to  penetrate  to  the  little  apartment. 
Some  of  these  Serddb  contained  one  or  two  statues  at 
most,  others  would  contain  twenty.  Some  are  in  wood 
or  hard  stone,  but  the  greater  number  are  in  painted 
limestone.  Seated  or  standing,  crouching  or  in  the 
attitude  of  walking,  they  all  claim  to  be  portraits — por- 
traits of  the  dead  man,  of  his  wife,  of  his  children,  of  his 
servants.  If  they  were  more  often  found  in  places  where 
they  would  have  been  visible,  their  presence  would  be 
explained  by  the  pleasure  members  of  a  family  would 
feel  in  seeing  the  features  of  those  they  had  loved.  But 
they  are  generally  walled  up  for  all  eternity  in  hidden 
corners  where  no  one  would  ever  penetrate :  we  must 
seek  other  reasons. 

The  Egyptians  formed  a  somewhat  coarse  idea  of 
the  human  soul.  They  regarded  it  as  an  exact  reproduc- 
tion of  the  body  of  each  individual,  formed  of  a  substance 
less  dense  than  flesh  and  bones,  but  susceptible  to  the 
sight,  feeling,  and  touch.  The  double,  or  to  call  it  by  the 
name  they  gave  it,  the  ka,  was  subject,  though  in  a  lesser 

*  Mariette,  "  Sur  les  tombes  de  TAncien  Empire  qu'on  trouve  a 
Saqqarah,"  1912,  pp.  8-9. 

51 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

degree  than  its  terrestrial  type,  to  all  the  infirmities  of 
our  life :  it  drank,  ate,  clothed  itself,  anointed  itself  with 
perfumes,  came  and  went  in  its  tomb,  required  furniture,  a 
house,  servants,  an  income.  A  man  must  be  assured  beyond 
the  tomb  of  the  possession  of  all  the  wealth  he  had  en- 
joyed in  the  world,  under  penalty  of  being  condemned 
to  an  eternity  of  unspeakable  misery.  His  family's  first 
obligation  towards  him  was  to  provide  him  with  a  durable 
body ;  they  therefore  mummified  his  mortal  remains  to 
the  best  of  their  ability,  and  buried  the  mummy  at  the 
bottom  of  a  pit  where  it  could  only  be  reached  with  the 
greatest  difficulty.  The  body,  however,  in  spite  of  the 
care  taken  in  preparing  it,  only  very  remotely  recalled 
the  form  of  the  living  person.  It  was,  besides,  unique 
and  easily  destroyed :  it  could  be  broken,  methodically 
dismembered,  and  the  pieces  scattered  or  burnt.  If  it 
disappeared,  what  would  become  of  the  double  ?  For  its 
support  statues  were  provided,  representing  the  exact 
form  of  the  individual.  Effigies  in  wood,  limestone,  hard 
stone,  bronze,  were  more  solid  than  the  mummy,  and 
there  was  nothing  to  prevent  the  manufacture  of  any  num- 
ber of  them  desired.  One  body  was  a  single  chance  of 
durability  for  the  double :  twenty  gave  it  twenty  chances. 
And  that  is  the  explanation  of  the  astonishing  number 
of  statues  sometimes  found  in  one  tomb.  The  piety  of 
the  relatives  multiplied  the  images,  and  consequently  the 
supports,  the  imperishable  bodies,  of  the  double  would,, 
by  themselves  alone,  almost  assure  him  immortality. 

On  this  theory  see  Lepage-Renouf ,  "  On  the  True  Sense  of  an  im- 
portant Egyptian  Word,"  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Society  of  Biblical 
Archceology ,  vol.  iv.,  pp.  494-508,  and  Maspero,  "  Memoires  du 
Congres  des  Orientalistes  de  Lyon,"  vol.  i.,  and  Bulletin  de  V Associa- 
tion scientiflque  de  France  (1878),  No.  594,  pp.  373-84. 

52 


A  Scribe's  Head 


Both  in  the  temples  and  hypogeums,  the  statues  of 
private  persons  were  intended  to  serve  as  a  support  to 
the  soul.  The  consecration  they  received  animated  them, 
so  to  speak,  and  made  them  substitutes  for  the  defunct: 
the  offerings  destined  for  the  other  world  were  served  to 
them.  The  tomb  of  a  rich  man  possessed  a  veritable 
chapel  to  which  a  special  body  of  priests  was  attached, 
formed  of  hon-ka  or  priests  of  the  double.  At  the  sacra- 
mental festivals  the  priests  of  the  double  performed  the 
necessary  rites,  they  looked  after  the  upkeep  of  the 
edifice  and  administered  its  revenues.  The  statues  of 
the  towns  themselves  demanded  particular  care.  Indeed, 
the  clergy  of  the  temple  in  which  they  were  placed  claimed 
their  part  in  the  advantages  derived  from  ancestor  worship  : 
veritable  acts  of  donation  were  drawn  up  in  their  favour, 
in  which  were  specified  the  part  they  were  to  play  in 
the  ceremonies,  the  quantity  of  the  offerings  that  fell  to 
their  share  for  the  service  rendered,  the  number  of  days 
in  the  year  consecrated  to  each  statue.  "  Agreement 
between  Prince  Hapi-T'aufi  and  the  hour-priests  of  the 
temple  of  Anubis,  master  of  Siout,  in  regard  to  one 
white  loaf  that  each  must  give  to  the  statue  of  the 
prince,  under  the  hand  of  the  ka-piiest,  the  18th  Thot, 
the  day  of  the  festival  of  Ouaga,^  and  also  the  gifts 
which  every  tomb  owes  to  its  lord  ;  afterwards  in  regard 
to  the  ceremony  of  kindling  the  flame,  and  the  procession 
that  they  ought  to  make  with  the  ka-priest  while  he 
celebrates  the  service  in  honour  of  the  defunct,  and  that 
they  march  to  the  north  corner  of  the  temple  on  the  day 
of  kindling  the  flame.  For  that  Hapi-T'aufi  gives  the 
houf^-priests  sl  bushel  of  corn  from  each  of  the  fields 
belonging  to  the  tomb,  the  firstfruits  of  the  harvest 

One  of  the  Egyptian  festivals  of  the  dead. 
53 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


of  the  prince's  domain,  as  each  commoner  in  Siout  is 
accustomed  to  do  from  the  firstfruits  of  his  harvest, 
for  every  peasant  always  makes  a  gift  from  the  first- 
fruits  of  his  harvest  to  the  temple."  The  ceremonial  is 
set  out  in  detail,  and  the  monument  tells  us  how,  and 
under  what  conditions,  a  dead  person  is  fed  in  Egypt. 
The  loaves,  meat  and  corn  were  placed  in  front  of  the 
statue  by  the  priests :  thence  they  reached  the  gods,  who, 
after  taking  their  part,  transmitted  the  rest  to  the  double. 
We  now  understand  why  the  statues  that  do  not 
represent  gods  are  always  and  uniquely  portraits  as  exact 
as  the  artists  could  render  them.  Each  was  a  stone  body  ; 
not  an  ideal  body  in  which  only  beauty  of  form  or  expres- 
sion was  sought,  but  a  real  body  in  which  care  should 
be  taken  neither  to  add  nor  take  away  anything.  If  the 
body  of  flesh  had  been  ugly,  the  body  of  stone  must  be 
ugly  in  the  same  way,  otherwise  the  double  would  not 
find  the  support  it  needed.  The  statue  from  which  the 
head  preserved  in  the  Louvre  was  broken  off  was,  un- 
doubtedly, the  faithful  portrait  of  the  individual  whose 
name  was  engraved  on  it :  if  the  realism  of  the  expression 
is  somewhat  brutal,  it  is  the  fault  of  the  model,  who  had 
not  taken  care  to  be  handsome,  and  not  that  of  the 
sculptor,  who  would  have  been  guilty  of  a  sort  of  impiety 
if  he  had  altered  the  physiognomy  of  his  model  in  the 
least  detail. 

For  complete  translation  of  the  contract  see  the  Transactions  of 
the  Society  of  Biblical  Archceology,  vol.  vii.,  pp.  1-9. 


54 


IV 


SKHEMKA,  HIS  WIFE  AND  SON 
A  GROUP  FOUND  AT  MEMPHIS 

{The  Louvre) 

Skhemka  lived  at  Memphis  at  the  end  of  the  Vth 
Dynasty.  He  was  attached  to  the  administration  of  the 
domains,  and  was  buried  in  the  necropoKs  of  Saqqarah. 
His  tomb,  discovered  by  Mariette  during  the  excavations 
of  the  Serapeum,  furnished  three  pretty  statues  to  the 
Louvre.^'  I  knew  the  group  reproduced  here  at  a  time 
when  the  coating  that  covered  it  had  suffered  very  Httle ; 
the  galleries  of  Europe  possess  nothing  to  be  compared 
with  it  for  finish  of  execution. 

I  shall  not  say  much  of  the  principal  personage :  he 
possesses  all  the  qualities  and  all  the  defects  to  which 
we  are  accustomed  in  the  work  of  the  sculptors  of  the 
Ancient  Empire.  The  modelling  of  the  torso,  arms,  and 
legs  is  excellent,  of  the  foot  mediocre,  of  the  hands 
execrable  ;  the  head  lives,  alive  and  intelligent  under  the 
large  wig,  with  its  rows  of  braids  one  above  the  other, 

*  The  Skhemka  group  was  catalogued  for  the  first  time  by  E.  de 
Rouge,  "Notice  sommaire  des  Monuments  egyptiens,"  1855,  pp. 
50-51,  under  the  number  S.  102.  The  other  two  i  statues  of  the  same 
person  possessed  by  the  Museum  are  both  entered  under  the  number 
S.103.    One  is  in  granite,  the  other  in  painted  limestone. 

55 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


which  frames  it.  The  two  accessory  statues  are  charming 
in  design  and  composition.  On  the  left  Ati,  the  dead 
mans  wife,  stands  leaning  against  the  back  of  the  seat 
embracing  her  husband's  leg.  The  face  and  limbs  are 
painted  yellow  in  accordance  with  a  convention  almost 
always  respected  in  Egypt.  ^  A  layer  of  bright  red  denotes 
the  tan  that  the  sun  lays  on  the  men's  skin  ;  the  light 
yellow  reproduces  the  more  delicate  shade  induced  by 
the  indoor  life  of  the  women.  The  hair,  parted  over 
the  forehead,  falls  in  two  masses  alongside  the  cheeks. 
The  sleeveless  dress  is  open  in  front,  and  the  opening 
extends  in  a  point  to  between  the  two  breasts  :  the  stuff 
exactly  follows  the  lines  of  the  body,  and  the  skirt  ends 
a  little  above  the  ankle.  The  position  of  the  breasts  is 
indicated  by  a  special  design  ;  all  the  rest  from  the  waist 
to  the  feet  is  embroidered  with  ornaments  in  colour, 
imitating  the  network  of  glass  beads  to  be  seen  in  the 
museums.!  A  necklace  with  two  rows  and  bracelets 
complete  the  costume.  On  the  right,  Knom,  son  of 
Skhemka  and  Ati,  serves  as  a  pendant  to  his  mother: 
he  is  naked  except  for  a  necklace  round  the  bottom  of 
his  neck  and  a  little  square  amulet  that  falls  on  his  chest. 
The  grace  and  charm  of  the  figures  cannot  be  too  much 
admired.  Although  of  small  dimensions,  the  artist  has 
endowed  them  with  the  physiognomy  and  features  suited 
to  their  age  with  as  much  exactness  as  if  he  had  been 
dealing  with  a  colossus.    The  firm  flesh  and  rounded  but 

There  are  exceptions  only  in  the  middle  of  the  XYIIIth  Dynasty, 
when  men  and  women,  and  especially  women,  are  painted  light  pink 
or  flesh  colour. 

f  The  pretty  painted  bas-relief  of  the  tomb  of  Seti  I  in  the 
Louvre  (E.  de  Rouge,  "  Notice  des  principaux  monuments,"  p.  35, 
B.  7)  shows  in  large  the  arrangement  of  the  glass  beads  on  the 
stuff. 

56 


SKHEMKA  WITH  HIS  WIFE  AND  SON. 
Limestone.    The  Louvre. 

TO  face  p.  56. 


Skhemka,  His  Wife  and  Son 


muscular  limbs  of  the  woman  in  her  prime,  and  the 
chubby  flesh  and  soft  limbs  of  the  child,  are  treated  equally 
happily.  The  mother's  face  has  a  smiling  charm,  the  son's 
a  naive  and  wondering  grace  :  the  Egyptian  chisel  did  not 
often  work  with  so  much  intelligence  and  lightness. 

The  gesture  with  which  each  of  the  two  small  people 
embraces  the  leg  of  the  big  one  is  not  an  artifice  of 
composition,  a  simple  way  of  attaching  the  subordinate 
elements  of  the  group  to  the  principal  one.  It  is  often 
to  be  found  in  turning  over  the  plates  of  Lepsius's  fine 
work."^  The  inscriptions  repeatedly  state  of  the  wife 
that  "she  loved  her  husband,"  and  the  artists  reveal  it 
in  action.  Seated  or  standing  by  his  side,  she  puts  her 
hand  on  his  shoulder  or  her  arm  round  his  neck ;  crouching 
or  kneeling,  she  leans  against  him,  her  breast  pressed 
against  his  leg,  her  cheek  leaning  against  his  knee.  And 
it  is  not  only  in  the  privacy  of  the  home  that  she  treats 
him  with  this  affectionate  abandon,  but  in  public,  before 
the  servants  or  the  assembled  vassals,  while  he  is 
inspecting  his  lands  and  reviewing  his  possessions,  t 

*  Cf.,  e.g.^  Lepsius,  "  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  476,  74^,  where  the  woman 
crouchmg  in  front  of  her  husband  puts  her  arm  round  his  leg. 

f  Here  are  some  references  to  plates  in  Lepsius  where  the  husband 
and  wife  are  represented  side  by  side  in  different  positions.  The 
woman  of  low  stature  crouches  behind  her  seated  husband  ("  Denk- 
maler," ii,,  lib)  ;  the  wife  and  husband,  both  of  heroic  stature,  are 
seated  on  the  same  armchair,  and  the  wife  puts  her  right  arm  round 
her  husband's  neck  ("  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  10&,  24,  25&,  416,  42a-&,  75a, 
etc.)  ;  the  wife  of  low  stature  stands  in  front  of  her  husband,  who 
is  of  heroic  stature  ("  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  386)  ;  she  stands  behind  him 
and  puts  her  arm  round  his  left  arm  ("  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  27,  33a), 
or  she  puts  her  arm  round  his  waist  ("Denkmaler,"  ii.,  38a)  ;  and  lastly, 
the  husband  and  wife,  of  the  same  stature,  are  standing,  the  wife  behind 
her  husband  and  putting  her  arm  round  his  neck  ("  Denkmaler,"  ii., 
13,  20-1,  296,  32,  346,  406,  436,  46,  58a,  596),  or  separated  from  him 
("Denkmaler,"  ii.,  73,  etc.). 

57 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


In  the  same  way  it  is  rare  to  find  a  personage  without 
his  children,  "  who  love  him,"  at  his  feet  or  by  his  side, 
from  the  little,  naked  long-haired  boy,  like  Knom,  to 
the  grown-up  sons  and  married  daughters.  To  sum  up, 
the  sculptor  to  whom  we  owe  the  Louvre  monument 
has  carved  in  stone  a  scene  of  contemporary  life.  He 
shows  us  Skhemka,  Ati,  and  Knom  grouped  as  they 
were  every  day :  and  what  is  conventional  in  his  work 
is  not  the  grouping  of  the  three  people,  but  the  dispro- 
portion in  stature  between  the  husband  and  wife,  and 
between  the  mother  and  son. 

But  here,  again,  he  is  only  conforming  to  a  prevailing 
tradition  of  his  art.  In  all  the  tombs  of  every  period, 
the  master  of  the  hypogeum  is  generally  of  the  height 
of  the  wall,  while  servants,  friends,  sons,  and  wives  are 
only  of  the  height  of  one  of  the  rows.  The  king,  in  the 
warlike  paintings  of  the  temples,  is  of  colossal  size,  while 
the  others,  friends  or  enemies,  beside  him,  look  like  a 
crowd  of  pigmies.  In  that  case  we  might  imagine  that 
the  difference  in  size  showed  only  the  difference  of  rank, 
but  the  explanation  does  not  suffice  elsewhere.  A  slave 
married  for  her  beauty  preserved  something  of  the  in- 
feriority of  her  former  condition  ;  a  princess  of  the  blood 
royal,  united  in  marriage  to  a  private  individual,  did  not 
therefore  renounce  her  royal  rank.  If  inequality  of  stature 
corresponded  to  inequality  of  rank,  the  sculptor  would 
have  made  the  first  smaller  and  the  second  bigger  than 
her  husband.  They  did  not,  however,  do  that:  slave  or 
princess,  they  gave  the  wife  a  stature  sometimes  equal 
but  more  often  lower  than  that  of  the  husband.^  Thus 

*  Thus  in  Lepsius  ("  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  74^),  where  the  noble 
Senotmhit,  surnamed  Mihi,  is  seated,  of  heroic  stature,  while  his 
wife,  Khontkaous,  is   represented  crouching  and   of  low  stature, 

58 


Skhemka,  His  Wife  and  Son 


the  treatment  does  not  show  social  distinction ;  the  woman 
was  legally  on  the  same  level  as  the  man.  If  the  master 
of  the  tomb  is  alone  in  his  height,  it  is  merely  because 
he  alone  is  at  home  in  the  tomb,  and  it  was  desired  to 
show  in  him  the  one  master,  the  personage  who  must  be 
protected  against  the  dangers  of  the  other  world  :  so  he  was 
designed  of  large  size,  as  we  underline  a  word  in  a  sentence 
in  order  to  emphasize  it. 

In  fact,  the  sculptor,  in  modelling  his  work,  thought 
of  the  necessities  of  the  life  beyond  the  tomb.  Skhemka's 
wife  living  might  be  superior  to  Skhemka  by  fortune  or 
birth,  and  so  take  precedence  of  him ;  before  the  dead 
Skhemka  she  was  only  a  subordinate  personage.  Egyptian 
theology  supposed,  it  would  seem,  that  the  wife  was  as 
indispensable  to  the  man  after  as  during  life,  and  that  is 
why  she  is  represented  by  his  side  on  the  walls  of  his 
tomb ;  but,  as  she  is  only  an  accessory  there,  the  sculptor 
and  the  painter  are  free  to  treat  her  as  they  understand 
the  matter.  If  the  husband  demanded  it,  they  gave  both 
the  same  stature,  seated  them  on  the  same  seat,  made  no 
sort  of  difference  between  them.  But  if  he  expressed  no 
wish,  they  could  either  suppress  her  altogether  or  rele- 
gate her  to  the  background  and  give  her  the  dimensions 
of  her  son,  as  they  did  with  Ati,  in  order  that  she  may 
lean  against  the  seat  on  which  her  husband  is 
enthroned. 

although  she  is  a  legitimate  daughter  of  the  king.  In  another  part 
of  the  tomb  (Lepsius,  "  Denkmaler,"  ii.,  73)  the  same  persons  are 
represented  standing  side  by  side  and  of  heroic  stature,  while  their 
children  are  of  ordinary  stature. 


59 


V 


THE  CROUCHING  SCRIBE 

Vth  dynasty 

{The  Louvre) 

He  was  found  by  Mariette  in  the  tomb  of  Skhemka  in 
1851,  during  the  soundings  which  preceded  the  discovery 
of  the  Serapeum.  He  is  now  in  the  Louvre,  in  the  centre 
of  the  "  Salle  civile  "  of  the  Egyptian  Gallery,  surrounded 
by  show-case  tables.  His  attitude,  in  conjunction  with 
the  unfortunate  place  assigned  him,  makes  him  look  like 
a  fellah  dealer  in  antiquities  seated  in  the  midst  of  his 
goods,  patiently  waiting  for  customers.  The  red  paint, 
which  was  perfect  when  he  was  brought  to  the  Louvre, 
has  worn  off  in  places  with  the  coating  on  which  it  was 
applied,  and  so  the  whity  colour  of  the  limestone  shows 
through  here  and  there ;  the  cross  light  from  the  two 
windows  falls  on  him  in  such  a  way  as  almost  to  efface 
the  modelling  of  the  shoulders  and  chest :  ordinary 
visitors,  for  whom  there  is  nothing  to  mark  it,  scarcely 
look  at  it,  and  pass  it  by  in  complete  indifference  to  the 
fact  that  one  of  the  masterpieces  of  Egyptian  sculpture 
is  before  them. 

Does  he  represent  the  great  lord  in  whose  tomb 
he  was  found  ?  Other  statues  that  entered  the  Louvre 
with   his   bear   the   name  of   Skhemka   and   pass  for 

60 


CROUCHING  SCEIBE. 
The  Louvre. 


The  Crouching  Scribe 


the  faithful  portrait  of  that  personage.^  If,  as  their 
careful  composition  leads  us  to  believe,  that  claim  is 
justified,  the  Crouching  Scribe  was  only  one  of  the 
numerous  relatives  or  servants  named  in  the  inscrip- 
tions of  the  chapel.  The  people  of  the  Ancient 
Empire  had  the  custom  of  shutting  up  in  the  Serddb,] 
by  the  side  of  the  statue  of  the  dead  person,  those  of 
other  individuals  belonging  to  his  family  or  his  house- 
hold. They  are  mourners,  both  men  and  women  crouch- 
ing down,  one  hand  hanging  or  cast  on  the  ground  about 
to  pick  up  the  dust  in  sign  of  mourning,  the  other  held 
in  front  of  the  face  and  plunged  into  the  hair ;  \  women 
who  crush  the  grain  on  the  stone  ;  servants  who  thrust 
their  arm  into  an  amphora,  probably  to  coat  it  with 
pitch  before  pouring  in  the  beer  or  wine.  Ours  is  a 
scribe :  his  legs  bent  under  him  and  placed  flat  on  the 
ground  in  one  of  those  positions  familiar  to  Orientals, 
but  almost  impossible  for  Europeans,  the  bust  upright 
and  well-balanced  on  the  hips,  the  head  raised ;  reed 
in  hand,  and  the  sheet  of  papyrus  spread  over  his 
knees,  he  still  waits,  at  an  interval  of  6,000  years, 
for  his  master  to  resume  the  interrupted  dictation. 
The  paintings  in  the  contemporary  tombs  tell  us  a 
hundred  times  rather  than  once  what  he  is  preparing  to 
write.  In  order  to  sustain  himself  in  the  other  world, 
the  great  Egyptian  lord  received  on  appointed  days  the 
offerings  due  to  him  from  the  domains  attached  to  his 
tomb :  one  was  to  bring  bread,  one  meat,  others  wine, 

*  See  the  preceding  chapter,  pp.  55-59. 
f  See  Chapter  III,  p.  51. 

\  We  know  now  (1912)  that  the  figures  described  by  Mariette  as 
mourners  are  cooks,  who  held  the  spit  in  one  hand  and  with  the  other 
protected  their  faces  from  the  heat  of  the  brazier  where  the  chickens 
were  roasting. 

61 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

cakes,  fruit.  It  was  quite  a  big  piece  of  bookkeeping, 
identical  with  that  usual  in  his  lifetime.  The  scribes  of 
flesh  and  blood  entered  the  real  revenues  as  they  came 
in  ;  the  scribe  of  stone  rendered  the  same  service  to  the 
master  of  stone  whom  he  attended  for  ever. 

We  cannot  say  that  our  scribe  was  handsome  in  his 
lifetime,  but  the  truth  and  vigour  of  his  portrait  com- 
pensates largely  for  what  he  lacks  in  beauty.  The  face 
is  almost  square,  and  the  strongly  accentuated  features 
indicate  a  man  in  his  prime  ;  the  large  mouth  with  thin 
lips  is  slightly  raised  at  the  corners  and  almost  disappears 
in  the  prominent  muscles  that  frame  it ;  the  cheeks  are 
rather  hard  and  bony ;  the  ears  are  thick  and  heavy,  and 
stand  out  awkwardly  from  the  head ;  and  the  low  brow 
is  crowned  with  coarse,  short  hair.  The  eye  is  well 
opened,  and  owes  its  special  vivacity  to  an  artifice  of 
the  ancient  sculptor.  The  stone  in  which  it  is  set  has 
been  cut  away  and  the  hollow  filled  with  black  and  white 
enamel ;  a  bronze  mounting  marks  the  edges  of  the  eye- 
lids, while  a  little  silver  nail  ^  fastened  under  the  crystal 
at  the  bottom  of  the  eyeball  receives  the  light,  and 
reflecting  it,  simulates  the  pupil  of  a  real  eye.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  imagine  the  striking  effect  that  this  combination 
may  produce  in  certain  circumstances.  When  Mariette 
cleared  out  the  tomb  of  Rahotpou  at  Meidoum,  the  first 
ray  of  light  which  entered  the  tomb,  that  had  been  closed 
for  6,000  years,  fell  on  the  forehead  of  two  statues  lean- 
ing against  the  wall  of  the  Serdahy  and  made  the  eyes 
sparkle  so  brilliantly  that  the  fellahs  threw  down  their 

-  In  examining  the  eye  of  the  Cheikh-el-Beled  closely,  I  found  that 
there  was  no  silver  nail  in  it,  but  that  the  luminous  spangle  was  pro- 
duced by  a  scrap  of  polished  ebony  placed  under  the  crystal ;  it  should 
be  the  same  with  the  eyes  of  the  Crouching  Scribe. 

62 


The  Crouching  Scribe 


tools  and  fled  in  terror.  Recovered  from  their  fear,  they 
wanted  to  destroy  the  statues,  persuaded  that  they  con- 
tained an  evil  genius,  and  were  only  prevented  from  doing 
so  at  the  point  of  the  pistol.  More  than  one  statue  of 
the  Ancient  Empire,  intact  at  the  moment  of  its  dis- 
covery, was  mutilated  for  the  same  reason  that  nearly 
proved  fatal  to  those  of  Meidoum.  In  the  bad  light  in 
which  the  Crouching  Scribe  is  placed,  the  eyeball  does 
not  shine  with  a  sufficiently  strong  sparkle,  but  it  really 
does  seem  to  have  life  in  it  and  to  follow  the  visitor  with 
its  look. 

The  rest  of  the  body  is  equally  full  of  expression. 
The  flesh  hangs  a  little,  as  is  fitting  with  a  man  of  a 
certain  age  whose  occupations  prevent  exercise.  The  arms 
and  back  are  good  in  detail;  the  lean  bony  hands  have 
fingers  of  a  greater  length  than  is  usual ;  the  rendering 
of  the  knee  is  minute  and  exact  in  a  way  rarely  found 
elsewhere  in  Egyptian  art.  The  whole  body  is,  so  to 
speak,  governed  by  the  animation  of  the  physiognomy, 
and  under  the  influence  of  the  same  feeling  of  expecta- 
tion that  dominates  it :  the  muscles  of  the  arm,  bust,  and 
shoulder  are  only  partly  at  rest,  ready  at  the  first  signal 
to  resume  the  task  that  has  been  begun.  No  work  better 
refutes  the  reproach  of  stiflhess  usually  made  in  regard 
to  Egyptian  art.  Let  us  add  that  it  is  unique  in 
Europe,  and  that  we  must  go  to  Boulaq  for  pieces  fine 
enough  to  sustain  comparison  without  disadvantage. 
But  it  is  not  enough  to  possess  a  masterpiece,  it  is  still 
more  important  to  preserve  it.  In  its  present  position 
the  Crouching  Scribe  runs  more  risks  than  formerly  in 
Egypt.  The  thousands  of  years  spent  buried  beneath 
the  sand  in  a  hypogeum  on  the  tableland  of  Saqqarah 
thoroughly  dried  up  the  limestone  of  which  it  is  made. 

63 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


Transported  to  our  damp  climate,  and  submitted  to  its 
sudden  changes  of  temperature,  it  is  only  too  much 
exposed  to  deterioration.  It  should  not  have  been  in- 
stalled without  protection  and  naked,  so  to  say,  in  the 
centre  of  a  room,  between  two  large  doors  always  open, 
round  about  which  there  are  perpetual  draughts.  The 
curators  at  Turin  have  placed  the  fine  limestone  statue 
of  Amenophis  I  possessed  by  the  Museum  in  a  tightly 
closed  glass  cage,  and  to  that  protection  is  due  the  fact 
that  the  Pharaoh  has  preserved  its  epidermis  and  colour 
intact ;  the  expense  is  not  so  great  that  the  Louvre 
would  be  impoverished  by  authorizing  a  similar  proceed- 
ing. The  demotic  inscriptions  of  the  Serapeum  are  care- 
fully placed  under  glass,  and  the  precaution  is  praise- 
worthy, although  it  makes  the  study  of  them  impossible ; 
it  is  then  high  time  to  take  similar  precautions  with  the 
Scribe.  The  damp  has  already  acted  on  it  a  little  ;  the 
red  coating  has  been  loosened  and  has  fallen  away  in  some 
places.  If  the  mechanical  work  of  destruction  is  allowed 
to  proceed  it  will  soon  be  in  the  same  condition  as  the 
three  statues  of  Sapoui  and  his  wife,  and  the  Louvre  will 
have  lost  one  of  the  finest  pieces  of  sculpture  Egypt  has 
given  us. 

In  comparing  it  with  the  statues  of  Skhemka  that 
we  have  already  described,^  we  are  led  to  ask  why  the 
statue  of  a  subordinate  person  should  be  so  superior  to 
that  of  his  master.  The  Egyptians  knew  nothing  of 
what  we  term  art  and  the  artist's  profession :  their 
sculptors  were  persons  who  cut  stone  with  more  or  less 
skill,  but  whose  work,  always  subordinated  to  the  plan 
of  a  building,  or  to  theological  considerations,  did  not 
possess  the  absolute  value  belonging  to  the  least  impor- 

*  Cf.  pp.  55-59. 
64 


The  Crouching  Scribe 


tant  statue  of  classical  antiquity  or  of  modem  times.  The 
effigy  of  an  individual  was  placed  in  his  tomb,  not 
because  it  was  beautiful,  but  because  it  represented  him 
and  served  as  a  support  to  his  double.  The  question 
of  skill  or  artistic  feeling  was  a  subordinate  one,  and  we 
find  twenty  statues  of  the  same  person,  some  of  which 
are  of  finished  workmanship  and  others  coarse  sketches  : 
whether  a  masterpiece  or  not,  the  stone  body  equally 
served  its  purpose.  Skhemka  fell  into  the  hands  of  a 
merely  conscientious  workman,  his  scribe  into  those  of  a 
highly  skilled  craftsman.  I  imagine  that  they  cared  little 
enough  if  the  sculptor  brought  more  or  less  talent  to  his 
task:  so  long  as  the  resemblance  was  there,  they  asked 
for  nothing  more. 


65 


E 


VI 


THE  NEW  SCRIBE  OF  THE  GIZEH  MUSEUM 

The  excavations  undertaken  by  M.  de  Morgan  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  necropolis  of  Saqqarah  have  recently 
brought  to  light  a  mastaba  in  fine  white  stone,  near  the 
tomb  of  Sabou,  a  little  to  the  east  of  Mariette's  old  house. 
No  architectural  facade  or  chapels  accessible  to  the  living 
were  found,  only  a  narrow  corridor  that  plunges  into  the 
masonry  from  north  to  south  with  5°  deviation  to  the 
east.  The  walls  had  been  prepared  and  made  smooth  to 
receive  the  usual  decoration,  but  when  the  mason  had  com- 
pleted his  task,  the  sculptor,  it  would  seem,  had  no  time  to 
begin  his.  None  of  the  sketches  with  the  chisel  or  brush 
customarily  found  in  the  unfinished  tombs  of  all  periods  are 
to  be  seen.  Two  large  stelae,  or,  if  it  is  preferred,  two 
niches  in  the  form  of  doors,  had  been  prepared  in  the  right- 
hand  wall,  and  a  statue  stood  in  front  of  each  in  the  same 
spot  where  the  Egyptian  workmen  had  placed  them  on 
the  day  of  the  funeral.  The  first  represents  a  man  seated 
squarely  on  a  stool,  wearing  the  loin-cloth,  and  on  his 
head  a  wig  with  rows  of  small  curls  one  above  the  other. 

*  This  article  was  published  in  two  slightly  different  forms  in 
the  Gazette  des  Beaux-Arts,  3rd  period,  1893,  vol.  ix.,  pp.  265-70, 
and  in  the  Monuments  Piot,  1894,  vol.  i.,  pp.  1-6  :  I  have  combined 
them  for  this  volume. 

66 


THE  NEW  SCRIBE   OF  THE  GIZEH  MUSEUM. 
Painted  limestone. 


To  face  p.  66. 


Scribe  of  the  Gizeh  Museum 


The  bust  and  legs  are  bare ;  the  fore-arms  and  hands 
rest  on  the  knees,  the  right  hand  closed  with  the  thumb 
sticking  out,  the  left  flat  with  the  tips  of  the  fingers 
reaching  beyond  the  hem  of  the  loin-cloth.  So  far  as 
may  be  judged  from  a  photograph,  the  general  style  is 
somewhat  weak  ;  but  the  detail  of  the  knee,  the  structure 
of  the  leg  and  foot,  are  carefully  rendered,  the  chest  and 
back  stand  out  by  the  excellent  modelling,  the  head, 
weighted  as  it  is  by  the  coiffure,  is  attached  to  the 
shoulder  with  an  easy  and  not  ungraceful  vivacity.  The 
face  is  not  in  good  relief,  and  has  a  sheepish  expression, 
but  the  mouth  is  smiling,  and  the  eyes  of  quartz  and 
crystal  have  an  extraordinarily  gentle  expression.  Taken 
altogether  it  is  a  very  good  piece  of  Egyptian  portraiture, 
and  would  be  a  valuable  addition  to  any  museum.^ 

The  new  scribe  was  crouching  in  front  of  the  second 
stele,  t  He  measures  in  height  almost  the  same  as  his 
colleague  in  the  Louvre,  and  sufficiently  resembles  him 
to  permit  both  being  described  in  almost  similar  terms. 
The  legs  are  bent  under  and  are  flat  on  the  ground,  the 
bust  upright  and  well  balanced  on  the  hips,  the  head 
raised,  the  hand  armed  with  the  reed,  and  in  its  place 
on  the  open  papyrus  sheet ;  they  are  both  waiting  at 
an  interval  of  6,000  years  for  the  master  to  resume 
the  interrupted  dictation.]:  The  professional  gesture  and 
attitude  are  reproduced  with  a  truth  that  leaves  nothing 
to  be  desired :  it  is  not  only  a  scribe  whom  we  have 
before  us,  it  is  the  scribe  as  the  Egyptians  knew  him 
from  the  beginning  of  their  history.   The  skill  with  which 

*  The  statue  is  described  in  the  "Visitor's  Guide  to  the  Cairo 
Museum,"  2nd  edition,  1912,  p.  58,  No.  142. 

t  Maspero,  "  Visitor's  Guide,"  2nd  edition,  1912,  pp.  57-8,  No.  141. 
I  Cf.  p.  61. 

67 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  sculptors  have  brought  out  and  co-ordinated  the 
general  features  belongmg  to  each  class  of  society  is 
largely  responsible  for  the  impression  of  monotony  pro- 
duced by  their  works  on  modern  spectators.  That 
impression  is  lessened  and  nearly  effaced,  if  we  look  a 
little  more  closely  and  see  how  carefully  the  sculptors 
have  noted  and  reproduced  the  details  of  form  and 
bearing  that  make  up  the  physiognomy  proper  to  each  of 
the  individuals  who  live  in  the  same  social  surroundings 
or  practise  the  same  profession.  Our  two  scribes  do  not 
cross  their  legs  in  identical  fashion ;  he  of  the  Louvre 
puts  the  right  leg  in  front,  he  of  Gizeh  the  left.  There 
is  no  fixed  choice,  and  children  at  first  tuck  their  legs 
under  without  thought  of  preference  for  one  or  the  other ; 
soon  they  acquire  a  habit  which  makes  them  keep  to  the 
position  once  adopted,  and  in  the  East  to-day  you  find 
people  who  put  either  the  left  or  right  leg  in  front,  and 
just  a  few  who  put  either  one  or  the  other  indifferently. 
The  Louvre  scribe  flattens  out  the  hand  that  holds  the 
reed,  the  man  of  Gizeh  sinks  down,  and  his  back  is 
slightly  bent.  This  shows  the  habit  of  the  individual,  and 
is  not  a  question  of  age,  for  a  glance  at  the  two  statues 
shows  that  the  Gizeh  scribe  is  younger  than  his  colleague 
of  the  Louvre :  he  is  not  out  of  the  thirties,  while  the 
other  is  certainly  over  forty. 

Indeed,  the  age  of  the  two  men  is  an  important  point 
of  which  we  must  not  lose  sight,  if  we  desire  to  judge 
soberly  the  real  value  of  the  two  works.  I  have  heard 
archaeologists,  when  comparing  them,  regret  that  the 
scribe  of  Gizeh  does  not  show  the  same  abundance  of 
carefully  studied  anatomical  detail  as  the  scribe  of  the 
Louvre ;  that  therein  lies  the  real  inferiority  of  the  first, 
whether  it  was  that  the  sculptor  was  less  conversant  with 

68 


Scribe  of  the  Gizeh  Museum 

the  anatomy  of  the  human  body  than  with  that  of  the  face, 
or  that  time  had  pressed,  and  he  had  contented  himself  with 
giving  his  subject  the  conventional  body  that  for  the  most 
part  sufficed  in  funerary  statues.  The  care,  as  I  have 
pointed  out,  with  which  the  small  details  of  the  attitude 
are  expressed  shows  that  the  reproach  is  undeserved,  and 
that  the  artist  has  worked  to  give  a  portrait  complete 
from  top  to  toe,  and  not  only  to  reproduce  a  head  on  a 
conventional  body.  The  roundness  of  the  form  preserves 
the  appearance  of  the  original,  and  shows,  realistically, 
the  age  the  subject  was  at  the  time  of  his  death,  or 
at  least  at  the  period  of  life  at  which  his  relatives  desired 
to  have  a  portrait  of  him.  In  the  best  facsimile  some- 
thing of  the  delicacy  of  the  monument  itself  must  be 
lost,  and  in  spite  of  the  great  care  taken  in  engraving  it, 
its  original  aspect  is  not  entirely  preserved.  I  think, 
however,  that  in  looking  closely  at  it  there  can  still  be 
seen  in  many  places  the  artistic,  supple  workmanship  by 
which  the  chisel  expressed  the  delicacy  and  vigour  of  the 
model.  The  most  vigorous  fellah  of  our  day,  when  young 
and  in  good  health,  has  apparently  slender  muscles  that 
do  not  stand  out:  like  those  of  the  porters  of  Boulaq, 
one  of  whom  without  aid  moved  a  stone  statue  of  nearly 
the  same  height  as  himself,  and  yet  had  hands  and 
calves  like  those  of  a  woman,  that  looked  of  slight 
strength  and  incapable  of  continuous  effi^rt.  The  knotty 
and  twisted  excrescences  to  be  seen  on  the  arms,  back, 
or  chest  of  our  athletes  were  rarely  found  in  Egyptians 
of  ancient  race,  at  least  in  youth.  The  ancient  sculptor 
rightly  noted  that  physiological  trait  of  his  people.  He 
had  a  young  man  before  him :  so  he  evolved  from  the 
limestone  a  young  Egyptian  body  in  which  the  play  of 
the  muscles  is  hidden  beneath  the  skin,  and   is  only 

69 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


betrayed  by  a  number  of  touches  manipulated  with 
knowledge  and  discretion.  If,  like  his  colleague  who 
sculptured  the  Louvre  scribe,  he  had  had  to  portray  a 
person  of  ripe  age,  he  would  not  have  exerted  himself  to 
bring  out  the  flabbiness  of  the  flesh  and  the  heaviness 
of  its  folds,  to  execute  all  the  pleasant  work  of  the  chisel 
which  so  well  reproduces  the  depredations  of  age  in  a  rich 
sedentary  man  of  fifty.  In  short,  he  worked  differently 
because  he  had  a  different  subject. 

There  is  no  sort  of  inscription  on  either  statue  to 
inform  us  of  the  name  and  characteristics  of  its  original, 
who  must  have  been  a  person  of  some  importance :  a 
large  tomb  invariably  meant  a  considerable  fortune,  or  a 
high  post  in  the  administrative  hierarchy  which  compen- 
sated for  mediocrity  of  fortune.  It  might  also  be  that 
Pharaoh,  desiring  to  reward  services  rendered  him  by 
some  one  in  his  entouj^age,  granted  him  a  statue,  a  stele, 
an  entire  tomb  built  by  the  royal  architects  at  the 
expense  of  the  Treasury.^  It  is  certain  that  our  anony- 
mous scribe  held  high  rank  in  his  lifetime,  but  to  what 
Dynasty  did  he  belong  ?  He  so  closely  resembles  the 
scribe  of  the  Louvre  that  he  was  evidently  his  contem- 
porary :  he  must  then  have  lived  at  the  end  of  the  Vth 
Dynasty,  and  we  reach  a  similar  result  if  we  compare  him 
with  the  other  statues  preserved  at  Gizeh.  It  is  of  the 
style  of  the  statues  of  Ti  and  of  Ranofir,  especially  of 
the  last  two.  One  of  them,  which  formerly  was  No.  975 
in  the  Boulaq  Museum,  is  full  of  dignified  feeling,  t 
Ranofir  is  standing,  his  two  arms  pressed  against  his 

Cf.  what  has  ah-eady  been  said  regarding  statues  of  private 
individuals  erected  by  the  favour  of  the  Pharaoh,  p.  40. 

+  Maspero,  "Visitor's  Guide  to  the  Boulaq  Museum,"  p.  28,  and 
now  "  Visitor's  Guide  to  the  Cairo  Museum,"  2nd  edition,  1912, 
p.  73,  No.  227. 

70 


Scribe  of  the  Gizeh  Museum 


body,  one  leg  in  advance,  in  the  attitude  of  a  prince  who 
is  looking  at  his  vassals  march  past  him.  Whoever  has 
seen  him  cannot  fail  to  observe  how  much  he  resembles 
our  new  scribe.  Firstly,  the  head-dress  is  the  same ;  they 
both  have  the  head  framed,  so  to  speak,  in  a  bell-mouthed 
wig.  The  hairs  or  fibres  of  which  it  is  made  were 
gummed,  as  is  the  case  to-day  with  the  hair  of  certain 
African  tribes.  The  hair  is  carefuU}'^  smoothed  on  the 
forehead  and  the  top  of  the  head,  and  being  parted  on 
the  cranium,  hangs  down  and  forms  a  kind  of  dark  case 
round  the  face  which  accentuates  the  ruddy  tint  of  the 
flesh.  The  modelling  of  the  torso,  the  muscling  of  the 
arms,  are  treated  in  the  same  way  in  both  statues,  and 
the  dignified  expression  which  characterizes  the  physiog- 
nomy of  Ranofir  relieves  the  somewhat  commonplace 
features  of  the  new  scribe.  Those  are  all  facts  that  are 
not  to  be  noted  in  other  portraits  of  our  personages. 
The  seated  statue  that  I  first  described  possesses  the 
general  aspect  of  the  individual,  and  undoubtedly  repre- 
sents him ;  but  the  technique  and  feeling  differ,  since  it 
is  necessarily  that  of  a  different  sculptor.  It  is  the  same 
with  Ranofir.  The  statue  of  him  numbered  1049  in  the 
Boulaq  Museum  lacks  the  high  dignity  we  admire  in 
No.  975.  It  is  so  heavy,  so  expressionless,  that  it  almost 
seems  to  be  another  Egyptian.  The  difference  in  the 
workmanship  proves  that  two  artists  were  commissioned 
to  execute  statues  of  the  same  man.  The  identity  of 
workmanship,  on  the  other  hand,  compels  us  to  recognize 
the  same  hand  in  the  statue  No.  975  of  Ranofir  and  in 
that  of  our  new  scribe :  the  two  works  proceeded  almost 
at  the  same  time  from  one  studio. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  find  out  if,  among  the  statues 
in  the  museums,  there  are  others  that  may  be  related  to  these 

71 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


and  have  a  common  origin.  I  do  not  so  far  know  any,  but 
I  ought  to  add  to  what  1  have  said  the  indication  of  a 
special  sign  by  whicli  they  can  be  distinguished.  The 
Egyptians  were  accustomed  to  paint  their  statues  and  bas- 

rehefs,  and  the  colours  in  which 
they  clothed  them  were  more 
varied,  and  more  subject  to 
change,  than  is  generally  recog- 
nized. We  are  used  to  see  only 
a  red-brown  tone  for  the  flesh, 
and  they  certainly  employed  it 
very  often  ;  they  did  not,  how- 
ever, employ  that  tone  only, 
and  men's  faces  are  occasionally 
coloured  in  a  very  different  way. 
The  colouring  of  statue  No.  975 
and  of  the  new  scribe  differs 
from  the  usual  manner.  That  of 
statue  No.  975  has  grown  paler 
since  Ranofir  left  his  tomb  and 
became  exposed  to  the  light,  but 
that  of  the  Gizeh  scribe  is  still 
fresh,  and  resembles  as  faithfully 
as  possible  the  yellow  complexion 
bordering  on  red  of  the  modern 
fellah.  The  greater  number  of 
archeeologists  who  occupy  them- 
selves with  Egyptian  art  neglect 
facts  of  this  kind.  During  my  stay 
in  Egypt  I  have  endeavoured  to  bring  them  out,  and  it  is 
in  co-ordinating  them  systematically  that  I  have  been  able 
to  verify  the  existence,  either  at  INIemphis  itself  or  in  the 
ancient  village  of  Saqqarah,  of  two  principal  studios  of 

72 


STATUE  OF  RANOFIR. 
Cairo  Museum. 


Scribe  of  the  Gizeh  Museum 


sculptors  and  painters  to  which  customers  of  the  later  periods 
of  the  Vth  Dynasty  entrusted  the  task  of  decorating  the 
tombs  and  carving  the  funerary  statues. 

Each  had  its  special  style,  its  traditions,  its  models,  from 
which  it  did  not  willingly  depart.  Commissions  were 
divided  between  them  in  unequal  proportions,  according  to 
whether  it  was  a  question  of  isolated  statues  or  of  bas- 
reliefs.  I  do  not  remember  observing  sensible  differences  of 
style  in  the  pictures  that  cover  the  walls  of  the  same 
mastaba:  for  that  kind  of  work  application  was  made  to 
one  or  the  other  studio,  and  it  alone  undertook  the  com- 
mission. For  the  statues,  on  the  contrary,  recourse  was 
had  to  both  at  the  same  time  :  the  task,  thus  divided,  was 
more  quickly  accomplished,  and  there  was  more  chance  that 
it  would  be  finished  by  the  day  of  the  funeral.  I  do  not 
mean  to  state  that  there  were  then  only  the  two  studios  of 
which  I  speak  :  1  think  I  have  found  traces  of  several  others, 
but  they  perhaps  enjoyed  less  vogue,  or  the  chances  of 
excavation  have  not  so  far  been  favourable  to  them. 

To  sum  up,  we  may  say,  without  the  risk  of  being  taxed 
with  exaggeration,  that  the  art  of  the  Ancient  Empire 
counts  another  masterpiece.  It  was  a  gift  of  happy  chance 
to  M.  de  Morgan  in  his  first  serious  excavations  as  earnest 
of  good  fortune  :  it  is  of  good  augury  for  the  future,  and,  as 
he  is  not  a  man  to  let  a  chance  slip  once  he  holds  it,  and 
since  he  has  the  material  means  and  the  money  required 
for  methodical  exploration,  we  may  hope  for  further  finds 
without  long  delay. 


73 


Vll 


THE  KNEELING  SCRIBE 
Vth  dynasty 

(Boulaq  Museum) 

If  he  had  not  been  dead  for  6,000  years,  I  should  swear  that 
I  met  him  six  months  ago  in  a  httle  town  of  Upper  Egypt. 
It  was  the  same  commonplace  round  face,  the  same 
flattened  nose,  the  same  full  mouth,  slightly  contracted  on 
the  left  by  a  foolish  smile,  the  same  banal  expressionless 
physiognomy :  the  costume  alone  was  different  and 
prevented  the  illusion  from  being  complete.  The  loin-cloth 
is  no  longer  in  fashion,  and  neither  is  the  large  wig ;  except 
the  fellahs  when  at  work,  no  one  now  goes  about  with  bare 
legs  and  torso.  Some  follow  fairly  closely  the  custom  of 
Cairo,  and  wear  the  too  small  tarbouche,  the  stiff  stambou- 
line,  the  European  starched  shirt,  but  without  a  cravat, 
black  or  crude  blue  trousers,  shoes  with  cloth  gaiters. 
Others  keep  to  the  turban,  long  gown,  wide  trousers,  and 
red  or  yellow  morocco  leather  babouches.  But  if  his  clothes 
have  changed  since  the  Vth  Dynasty,  his  deportment  has 
remained  perceivably  identical.  The  modern  secretary, 
after  delivering  his  papers  to  his  master,  crosses  his  hands 
over  his  chest  or  his  stomach  in  the  fashion  of  the  ancient 
scribe ;  he  no  longer  kneels  while  waiting,  but  assumes  the 
humblest  attitude  imaginable,  and  if  his  costume  did  not 

74 


To  face  p.  74. 


The  Kneeling  Scribe 

hide  it,  we  should  recognize  the  suppleness  that  characterizes 
the  Boulaq  statue  in  the  movement  of  his  shoulders  and 
spine.  His  chief  finishes  reading  the  papers,  affixes  his  seal 
to  this  one  or  that,  writes  a  few  lines  across  another,  and 
throws  the  sheets  on  the  ground :  the  secretary  picks 
them  up,  and  returns  to  his  office  without  offence  at  the 
cavalier  manner  in  which  his  work  is  given  back  to  him. 
Indeed,  is  it  to  be  expected  that  a  moudir,  a  man  receiving 
a  large  salary,  would  take  the  trouble  to  stretch  out  his  arm 
to  meet  the  hand  of  a  mere  ill-paid  employee  ?  In  fact, 
he  treats  his  subordinates  as  his  superiors  treat  him ;  his 
subordinates,  in  their  turn,  act  in  a  similar  way  towards 
theirs,  and  so  things  go  on  right  down  the  ladder,  and  no 
one  dreams  of  objecting. 

Our  scribe  was  one  of  those  to  whom  the  papers  were 
thrown  more  often  than  to  others.  He  occupied  a 
somewhat  low  place  in  the  hierarchy,  and  no  bond  attached 
him  to  the  great  famihes  of  his  period.  If  he  is  kneeling, 
it  is  that  the  sculptor  has  represented  him  in  one  of  his 
ordinary  attitudes  during  the  hours  of  work ;  he  has 
also  drawn  his  portrait  with  the  fidelity  and  jovial  good 
humour  adopted  by  artists  in  portraying  scenes  of  everyday 
life.  The  man  has  just  brought  a  roll  of  papyrus  or  a 
tray  laden  with  papers ;  kneeling  in  the  approved  manner, 
the  bust  well-balanced  on  the  hips,  the  hands  crossed,  the 
back  bowed,  the  head  slightly  bent,  he  waits  until  his  master 
has  finished  reading.  Does  he  think?  Scribes  felt  some 
secret  apprehension  when  appearing  before  their  masters. 
The  rod  played  a  large  part  in  the  discipline  of  the  offices. 
An  error  in  the  addition  of  an  account,  a  word  omitted 
in  copying  a  letter,  an  instruction  misunderstood,  an  order 
awkwardly  executed,  and  the  blows  fell.  Few  employees 
escaped  flogging.    If  they  did  not  deserve  it,  it  would  be 

75 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


inflicted  on  principle  :  "  That  young  fellow  requires  a  beat- 
ing. He  obeys  when  he  is  flogged  !  "  ^  The  sculptor  has 
admirably  transferred  to  the  stone  the  expression  of  resigned 
uncertainty  and  sheepish  gentleness  with  which  the  routine 
of  an  entire  life  spent  in  service  had  endowed  the  model. 
The  mouth  is  smiling,  for  such  is  the  demand  of  etiquette, 
but  there  is  no  joy  in  the  smile.  The  nose  and  cheeks 
grimace  in  unison  with  the  mouth.  The  two  big  enamel 
eyes,  surrounded  with  bronze,  have  the  fixed  expression 
of  a  man  who  is  vaguely  waiting,  without  looking  atten- 
tively at  anything  or  concentrating  his  thought  on  a 
definite  object.  The  face  lacks  intelligence  and  vivacity. 
After  all,  the  profession  did  not  exact  great  alertness  of 
mind.  The  formulas  of  administration  were  simple  and 
of  little  variety,  the  arithmetic  was  not  complicated  ;  it 
was  possible  to  get  on  easily  with  memory  and  industry, 
and  so,  without  much  trouble,  to  earn  sufficient  to  pur- 
chase a  good  funerary  statue. 

Our  statue  was  found  at  Saqqarah  t  in  a  tomb  of 
somewhat  mediocre  appearance.     Neither  the  name  nor 

The  expression  is  borrowed  from  a  letter  of  the  Papyrus 
Anastasis,  No.  3.  Its  position  in  the  Egyptian  context  leads  me 
to  believe  that  it  was  an  often-quoted  proverb.  The  idea  is  repeated 
in  different  forms  in  the  scribes'  correspondence  :  "  Work,  or  you 
will  be  beaten."  "  When  the  scribe  reaches  the  age  of  manhood,  his 
back  is  broken  by  the  blows  he  has  received." 

t  Mariette,  "Notice  des  principaux  monuments  du  Musee  de 
Boulaq,"  6th  edition,  1876,  p.  235,  No.  769  :  "  Memphis.  Saqqarah— 
limestone  II,  1  foot  2  inches — kneeling  figure.  His  hands  crossed 
on  his  legs.  His  eyes  are  of  mosaic  work  and  formed  of  several  stones 
curiously  combined."  The  statue  of  the  kneeling  scribe  figures  in  a 
group  in  Plate  XX  of  Mariette's  work,  "  Album  du  Musee  de  Boulaq," 
containing  40  plates,  photographed  by  MM.  Delie  and  Bechard,  with 
explanatory  text  edited  by  Auguste  Mariette-Bey.  Cairo,  Moures  et 
Cie,  1871,  fol. 

76 


The  Kneeling  Scribe 


filiation  of  the  man  informs  us  under  what  king  or  Dynasty 
he  vegetated ;  but  in  comparing  him  with  the  statue  of 
Ranofir  ^  we  are  able  to  assign  him  his  place  in  the  series. 
First,  both  our  scribe  and  Ranofir  wear  a  wig  of  a  form 
somewhat  rare  at  that  period  ;  the  hair,  parted  from  the 
centre  of  the  brow,  is  drawn  back  in  a  mass  behind  the 
ears  and  hangs  down  straight  round  the  neck.  Our  scribe, 
instead  of  the  red  complexion  usually  attributed  to  men's 
faces,  is  painted  light  yellow,  very  like  those  of  women. 
Ranofir  shows  the  same  peculiarity,  an  unusual  one  under 
the  Ancient  Empire.  I  do  not  think  it  could  have  been 
mere  caprice  on  the  part  of  the  artist.  A  scribe,  forced 
to  live  always  in  his  office  as  women  do  in  their  homes, 
would  have  a  less  sunburnt  skin  than  his  colleagues  who 
worked  in  the  open  air :  the  yellow  colour  of  the  lime- 
stone would  thus  be  a  sort  of  professional  sign,  and  would 
correspond  with  a  lighter  complexion  in  the  original.  The 
titles  of  Ranofir  prove  that  he  lived  under  the  last  reigns  of 
the  Vth  Dynasty,  t  and  in  placing  the  kneeling  scribe  at  the 
same  period,  we  are  sure  of  not  being  much  in  error.  I 
have  preferred  to  base  my  opinions  on  purely  archaeological 
grounds,  but  I  think  an  examination  of  the  style  of  the 
two  statues  would  carry  the  connection  still  farther:  the 

*  Mariette,  Notice  des  principaux  monuments  du  Musee  de 
Boulaq,"  6th  edition,  1876,  p.  216,  No.  582.  The  Boulaq  Museum 
possesses  a  second  statue  of  the  same  person  (ibid.,  p.  93,  No.  28),  but 
of  a  less  fine  execution  than  the  statue  No.  582.  Cf.  what  is  said 
of  the  two  statues  on  pp.  70-73  of  this  volume. 

t  Mariette,  "  Notice,"  p.  217  :  "  The  sum  of  the  qualities,  and  study 
of  the  inscriptions  on  the  base  of  the  monument,  leave  no  doubt  as 
to  the  epoch  to  which  it  belongs.  Ranofir  evidently  lived  under  the 
Ancient  Empire.  His  titles  bring  him  near  the  Vth  Dynasty."  The 
study  of  the  inscriptions  leads  me  to  be  more  certain  than  Mariette 
was.    Ranofir  undoubtedly  lived  at  the  end  of  the  Vth  Dynasty. 

77 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


way  in  which  the  neck  is  attached  to  the  shoulders,  and 
particularly  the  way  in  which  the  hands  are  treated,  is 
almost  identical  in  the  two  cases.  I  do  not  know  if  I 
am  mistaken,  but  I  have  almost  persuaded  myself  that 
the  statue  of  Ranofir  and  that  of  the  kneeling  scribe  come 
from  the  same  studio,  and  are  perhaps  the  fruit  of  the 
same  chisel.  I  do  not  despair  of  finding  other  monuments 
of  a  similar  origin,  and  of  reconstituting  in  part  the  work 
of  one  of  the  masters  of  which  the  tombs  of  Memphis 
have  preserved  the  various  productions,  but  without 
preserving  their  names. 

The  execution  is  very  careful :  unfortunately  the  lime- 
stone in  which  the  scribe  is  cut  was  too  soft,  and  it  is 
worn  away  in  places.  The  knees  have  suffered  most,  and 
it  is  a  great  pity,  for  we  can  see  by  what  is  left  of  them 
how  careful  the  artist  has  been  with  the  modelling.  The 
arms  are  not  divided  from  the  bust,  the  hands  are  heavy, 
the  feet  long,  but  the  play  of  the  muscles  of  the  chest 
and  neck  is  well  noted.  In  short,  it  is  an  estimable  work 
of  a  conscientious  sculptor  who  thoroughly  understood 
his  vocation. 


78 


VIII 


PEHOURNOWRl 
STATUETTE  IN  PAINTED  LIMESTONE  FOUND  AT  MEMPHIS 

{The  Louvre) 

Mariette  found  the  statuette  by  chance  when  searching 
the  Serapeum.  It  had  formerly  been  taken  from  the  pit 
in  which  it  was  shut  up  and  thrown  amid  the  rubbish  of 
the  great  sphinx  avenue  that  leads  to  the  tomb  of  Apis. 
The  individual  was  named  Pehournowri ;  he  was  cousin 
royal,  and  fulfilled  functions  that  I  do  not  know  how 
to  define.  Nothing  in  the  inscription  helps  us  to  con- 
jecture with  what  king  he  claimed  relationship,  but  its 
style  proves  that  he  lived  under  the  Vth  Dynasty.  That 
he  was  of  mature  age  is  indicated  by  the  plenitude  of 
form,  by  the  fine  proportions  and  the  benevolent  and 
benign  aspect.  A  short  wig,  a  necklace,  a  loin-cloth 
scarcely  reaching  the  knees,  completes  his  costume.  His 
statue  is  not  one  in  front  of  which  we  naturally  pause  when 
walking  through  a  museum.  I  do  not  think  that  during 
the  thirty  years  it  has  been  in  the  Louvre  it  has  attracted 
the  attention  of  any  one  except  experts  in  Egyptology. 
Not  that  it  lacks  merit :  the  modelling  is  exact,  the 
execution  skilful  and  delicate,  the  expression  frank  and 
successful,  but  the  pose  differs  very  slightly  from  that 
which  hundreds  of  other  artists  have  given  to  hundreds 

79 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

of  other  statues.  The  careless  visitor  who  passes  from 
one  seated  man  to  a  second,  and  then  to  many  others, 
does  not  think  of  looking  for  the  details  of  execution 
that  distinguish  them.  He  thinks  that  when  he  has  seen 
one  or  two  he  has  seen  all,  and  departs  with  the  idea 
that  the  chief  attribute  of  Egyptian  art  is  monotony. 

Egyptian  sculptors  did  not  greatly  vary  the  pose  of 
their  sitters.    Sometimes  they  represented  them  standing 
and  walking,  one  leg  in  advance  of  the  other,  sometimes 
standing,  but  motionless,  with  the  feet  together,  some- 
times sitting  on  a  seat  or  a   stone  pedestal,  sometimes 
kneeling,  more  often  crouching,  the  chin  against  the  knees 
like  the  fellahs  of  to-day,  or  the  legs  flat  on  the  ground 
like  the  scribe  of  the  Louvre.^    The  details  of  arrange- 
ment and  costume  may  be  modified  ad  infinitum,  but 
the  attitude  is  nearly  always  regulated  by  the  six  types 
I  have  enumerated.    Some  modern  critics  attribute  this  fact 
to  the  inexperience  of  the  sculptors,  others  to  the  inflexi- 
bility of  certain  hieratical  rules.    But  having  seen  not 
only  the  few  incomplete  pieces  to  be  found  in  Europe,  but 
also  the  monuments  still  existing  in  Egypt,  I  cannot 
admit  those  reasons.    Everywhere  in  the  bas-reliefs  of  the 
temples  and  tombs  a  multiplicity  of  gestures  or  attitudes 
are  to  be  seen  which  show  to  what  point  the  artists 
could,  when  they  pleased,  diversify  the   human  figure: 
the  peasant  bends  over  the  hoe,  the  joiner  leans  over  his 
bench,  the   scribe   stoops   over  his  paper,  the  dancers, 
girls  and  men,  twist  and  balance  their  bodies,  the  soldiers 
brandish  their  lances  or  march  in  time,  as  naturally  as 
possible.    And  the  sculptors   even  reproduced  positions 
in  their  statues  very  different  from  those  we  are  accustomed 
to  see  at  the  Louvre  :  the  kneeling  woman  who  is  grind- 

*  See  pp.  60-65. 
80 


PEHOURNOWRI. 
The  Louvre. 


To  face  p.  80. 


Pehournowri  Statuette 


ing  her  com,  the  baker  who  is  kneading  the  dough,  the 
slave  who  coats  the  amphora  with  pitch  before  pouring 
in  the  wine,  the  crouching  mourner  of  Boulaq,*  are  all  com- 
posed and  modelled  with  a  lightness  of  action  and  a 
perfection  of  expression  that  leaves  no  doubt  as  to  the  skill 
of  the  artist.  It  is  true  that  hieratical  rules  existed,  and 
no  one  will  dispute  that  fact,  but  they  were  reserved  for 
matters  of  religion  and  for  those  alone.  They  exacted, 
for  instance,  that  Amon  must  always,  in  every  case, 
have  the  attributes,  costume,  and  attitude  proper  to  the 
god,  but  they  in  no  wise  ordered  that  all  men  were  to 
be  confined  to  one  of  the  five  attitudes  I  have  just 
described.  The  freedom  of  composition  to  which  the 
large  historical  pictures  of  the  temples  or  the  domestic 
scenes  of  the  tombs  testify,  does  not  agree  with  what  we 
are  told  concerning  the  inflexibility  of  the  hieratical  rules. 

I  shall  not  now  touch  on  the  statues  of  kings  or 
divinities :  1  shall  have  an  opportunity  later  of  treating 
them  at  leisure.  Those  of  private  individuals  represent 
for  the  most  part  persons  of  rank,  great  nobles,  people  of 
the  court,  officers,  magistrates,  priests,  employees  of  birth 
or  fortune ;  they  come  from  nearly  all  the  cemeteries, 
and  are  portraits  of  the  man  for  whom  the  tomb  was 
hollowed  out  or  of  people  of  his  house.  The  master 
stands  in  an  attitude  of  command,  or  sits  like  Pehournowri, 
and  he  could  only  have  one  or  the  other  of  those 
attitudes.  The  tomb  is,  in  fact,  his  private  house,  where 
he  rests  from  the  fatigues  of  life,  as  he  used  to  do  in 
his  terrestrial  home.  A  soldier  when  at  home  does  not 
carry  his  arms,  a  magistrate  does  not  wear  his  robe : 
soldier  or  magistrate,  the  insignia  of  the  profession  are 
laid  aside  when  he  returns  home.    Thus  the  master  of 


"  He  is  a  cook,  as  I  mentioned  on  p.  61,  note  J. 

81  F 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  tomb  always  wears  his  civil  costume,  and  leaves  the 
marks  of  his  profession  at  the  door. 

Then,  also,  the  accessible  part  of  his  dwelling  has  a 
special  destination  which  regulates  the  pose  of  the  statues : 
it  is,  in  fact,  his  reception-room,  where  on  certain  days  the 
family  assembled  to  present  the  offerings  to  him,  in  more 
prosaic  words,  to  dine  v^th  him.  Whether  his  statue  was 
visible  in  one  of  the  open  chambers  or  invisible  in  the 
Serddb,^  it  was  his  substitute.  It  is  sufficient  to  look  at  the 
neighbouring  bas-reliefs  to  discover  what  were  the  official 
attitudes  of  the  dead  man  in  the  tomb.  He  was  present 
at  the  preliminaries  of  the  sacrifice,  the  sowing  and 
the  harvest,  the  rearing  of  the  cattle,  fishing,  hunting,  the 
execution  of  crafts,  and  he  saw  all  the  works  carried 
out  for  the  eternal  dwelling :  he  was  then  standing,  one 
foot  in  advance,  head  erect,  hands  hanging  down,  or 
armed  with  the  staff  of  command.  Elsewhere,  one  after 
the  other,  the  different  courses  of  the  meal  are  served 
him,  cakes,  wines,  canonical  meats,  fruits  which  he  needs 
in  the  world  of  the  dead:  then  he  is  seated  in  an  arm- 
chair alone  or  with  his  wife.  The  sculptor  employed  for 
his  statues  the  two  positions  he  has  in  the  paintings : 
standing,  he  receives  the  homage  of  his  vassals ;  seated, 
he  takes  part  in  the  meal.  And  in  the  same  way  the 
statues  which  embody  the  members  of  the  family  and  of 
the  household  have  likewise  the  attitude  suited  to  their 
rank  and  occupation.  The  wife  is  sometimes  standing, 
sometimes  sitting  on  the  same  seat  as  her  husband,  or  on  a 
separate  one ;  sometimes,  as  in  life,  crouching  at  his  feet. 
The  son  wears  the  costume  of  childhood,  if  the  statue  was 
carved  while  he  was  still  a  child,  or  the  costume  and 
attitude  of  his  office  if  he  was  an  adult.     The  acting 

See  p.  51. 
82 


Pehournowri  Statuette 


scribe  crouches,  the  roll  spread  on  his  knees,  as  if  he  was 
writing  from  dictation  or  reading  from  an  account-book. 
The  slave  grinds  the  corn,  the  bakers  knead  the  dough,  the 
cellarers  pitch  their  amphoras,  the  mourners  lament  and 
tear  their  hair  as  it  was  their  duty  to  do  in  the  world 
above;  each  individual  is  occupied  according  to  his 
condition.  The  social  hierarchy  followed  the  Egyptian 
after  death,  and  it  regulated  the  pose  of  the  statue  after, 
as  it  had  regulated  that  of  the  model  before,  death.  Up 
to  a  certain  point  it  is  the  same  to-day,  and  he  who  carves 
the  statue  of  a  printer  is  careful  not  to  attribute  to  him 
the  action  and  costume  of  a  miner  or  a  sailor.  These 
statues,  shut  up  in  the  tomb,  formed  a  sort  of  tableau  in 
which  each  person  held  for  ever  the  pose  characteristic  of 
his  rank  or  his  profession.  The  artist  was  free  to  vary 
the  detail  and  regulate  the  accessories  according  to  his 
fancy,  but  he  could  not  change  the  general  disposition 
without  injuring  the  utility  of  his  work. 

At  bottom,  it  is  with  the  statues  of  Ancient  Egypt  as 
with  the  pictures  of  saints  of  the  Italian  schools.  The 
painters  had  to  treat  their  subject  on  lines  from  which 
they  could  not  depart  without  falsifying  or  disfiguring  it. 
Bring  sixty  or  eighty  St.  Sebastians  together  in  a  room  : 
how  many  of  those  who  saw  them  would  escape  the 
boredom  that  infallibly  results  from  constant  repetition? 
When  the  tenth  St.  Sebastian  was  reached  only  a  few  profes- 
sional artists  would  not  have  already  gone  away.  I  am 
supposing,  too,  that  only  choice  pictures  had  been  col- 
lected in  which  the  qualities  of  a  master  are  easily 
recognized.  If,  on  the  contrary,  there  had  been  collected 
at  random  all  the  available  St.  Sebastians  without  first 
eliminating  the  bad  pictures,  the  finest  St.  Sebastians  in 

*  See  p.  61. 
83 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


the  world,  lost  in  the  crowd,  would  be  likely  to  attract 
no  more  attention  from  the  public  than  the  Crouching 
Scribe  or  the  other  masterpieces  of  Egyptian  sculpture 
in  the  Louvre.  The  hypothesis  appears  absurd,  because 
no  one  will  easily  admit  that  any  one  could  have  the  idea 
of  making  such  a  collection.  I  agree  so  far  as  modern 
or  ancient  works,  the  value  of  which  is  known,  are  con- 
cerned ;  but  Egyptian  Museums  have  so  far  always  been 
classified  as  depots  of  archaeological  objects,  not  as  art 
galleries.  Each  statue  is  a  scribe,  a  god,  a  king ;  it  is  the 
scribe  Hor  of  the  XlXth  Dynasty,  or  the  scribe  Skhemka 
of  the  Vth,  or  the  king  Sovkhotpou,  wearing  the  head- 
dress of  the  pschent,  and  that  is  all.  The  trumpery 
scribes  and  the  scribes  that  emanate  from  the  hands  of 
a  master  are  confused  under  the  same  rubric,  and  no 
mark  is  placed  to  distinguish  the  good  from  the  bad. 
Pehournowri  is  a  scribe,  Ramke  a  second  scribe,  Rahotpou 
a  third  scribe,  just  as  the  St.  Sebastian  of  such  or  such 
a  great  Italian  master  and  the  St.  Sebastians  of  the  Epinal 
pictures  are  two  St.  Sebastians :  the  public  which  is  not 
warned,  and  which  has  no  more  interest  in  one  scribe 
than  in  another,  passes  on  without  looking. 

The  impression  of  monotony  is  produced  by  the  per- 
petual repetition  of  the  same  types  and  by  the  method 
of  classification  adopted  in  the  museums.  If  it  was  decided 
to  do  for  Egypt  what  has  been  done  for  Greece  and  Rome, 
to  separate  the  productions  of  art  and  the  objects  of 
archaeology,  people  s  opinion  would  be  promptly  modified. 
The  impression  of  monotony  would  not  wholly  disappear, 
because  the  number  of  types  studied  by  the  Egyptian 
sculptors  was  not  sufficiently  numerous :  it  would  be 
lessened  and  would  no  longer  blind  the  crowd  to  the  real 
beauty  and  perfection  that  reside  in  Egyptian  sculpture. 

84 


IX 


THE  DWARF  KHNOUMHOTPOU 
(Vth  or  VIth  dynasty) 

(Boulaq  Museum) 

The  charming  person  who  left  us  this  statue  is  known, 
since  the  Exhibition  of  1878,  by  the  name  of  the  Super- 
intendent of  the  Cooks ;  his  title  in  the  inscription  on  the 
pedestal  indicates  a  keeper  of  the  wardrobe.  In  his  lifetime 
he  doubtless  enjoyed  some  notoriety,  since  he  had  one  of 
the  fine  tombs  of  Saqqarah  for  himself  alone,  but  we  know 
nothing  of  his  history.  His  name  was  Khnoumhotpou,  a 
name  later  made  illustrious  by  a  prince  of  Minieh  under 
the  Xllth  Dynasty:  his  place  of  burial  proves  that  he 
was  born  at  the  end  of  the  Vth  or  beginning  of  the 
VIth  Dynasty. 

He  was  a  dwarf,  and  a  very  small  dwarf.  The  statue 
is  scarcely  a  foot  in  height,  and  the  dimensions  of  the 
head  show  that  it  was  probably  half  the  natural  size.  It 
reproduces  the  characteristics  proper  to  dwarfs  without 
exaggerating  them.  The  head,  of  a  suitable  size,  is  long- 
shaped  and  flanked  by  two  large  ears.  The  expression 
of  the  face  is  heavy  and  stupid,  the  eyes  narrow  and 
raised  at  the  temples,  and  the  mouth  wide  and  ill-formed. 
The  chest  is  strong  and  well  developed,  but  the  artist 
has  employed  his  ingenuity  in  vain  in  order  to  dissimulate 

85 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  hind-quarters  by  covering  them  with  a  vast  white 
petticoat;  notwithstanding,  we  feel  that  the  torso  is 
not  in  proportion  to  the  arms  and  legs.  The  stomach 
forms  a  round  projection,  and  the  hips  recede  in  order 
to  counterbalance  the  stomach.  The  thighs  only  exist  in 
a  rudimentary  state,  and  the  whole  individual,  mounted  as 
he  is  on  little  deformed  feet,  seems  about  to  fall  face 
downwards  on  the  ground.  The  flesh  was  painted  red, 
the  hair  black,  but  the  colour  has  peeled  off  or  been 
effaced  in  places.  The  two  legs  were  broken  formerly  at 
the  ankle,  then  stuck  on  again  when  the  statue  was 
transported  to  the  Museum.  It  is  very  possible  that  the 
accident  happened  during  the  execution  of  the  statue,  for 
the  limestone  used  by  the  Egyptians  is  so  fragile  that  the 
sculptor  did  not  venture  to  detach  the  arms  from  the 
body :  too  hard  a  blow  of  the  mallet  while  freeing  the  legs 
may  have  caused  the  unfortunate  fracture  that  spoils  the 
bottom  of  the  monument. 

Khnoumhotpou  is,  so  far,  the  only  dwarf  that  has  come 
to  light  who  is  a  nobleman.  Similar  dwarfs  were  not 
lacking  in  Egypt,  but  they  nearly  all  belonged  to  the 
class  of  jugglers  and  buffoons.  The  Pharaohs  and  the 
princes  of  their  court  bestowed  the  same  affection  on  these 
deformed  creatures  as  did  Christian  or  Mussulman  kings 
in  medieeval  times ;  their  household  would  not  have  been 
complete  without  two  or  three  of  them  of  an  aspect  more 
or  less  grotesque.  Ti  possessed  one  that  figures  by  her 
in  her  tomb  :  the  poor  wretch  liolds  in  his  right  hand  a 
kind  of  large  wooden  sceptre  terminated  by  a  model  of 
a  human  hand,  and  leads  a  greyhound  almost  as  tall  as 
himself  in  a  leash.  Elsewhere  dwarfs  are  represented 
crouching  on  a  stool  at  the  feet  of  their  masters,  by  the 
side  of  the  favourite  monkey  or  dog.      We  know  from 

86 


To  face  p.  86. 


The  Dwarf  Khnoumhotpou 


the  pictures  of  Beni-Hassan  that  two  of  them  belonged  to 
the  prince  of  Minieh's  suite ;  one,  despite  his  small  size, 
does  not  lack  elegance,  but  the  other  enjoys  with  the 
exiguity  of  his  stature  the  pleasure  of  being  club-footed. 
The  Egyptian  heaven  did  not  escape  the  prevailing  mania 
any  more  than  the  court  of  the  Pharaohs,  and  it  included 
several  dwarfs,  of  whom  two  at  least  had  an  important 
role  :  Bisa,  who  presided  over  arms  and  the  toilet,  and  the 
Phtah,  who  for  a  long  while  has,  without  reason,  been 
called  embryonic  Phtah. Perhaps  Knoumhotpou  joined 
to  his  functions  of  keeper  of  the  wardrobe  the  office  of 
court  buffoon ;  perhaps  he  was  of  noble  birth,  and  preserved 
by  his  origin  from  the  disagreeables  to  which  his  brethren 
of  low  extraction  were  exposed. 

But  we  have  no  need  to  know  what  he  was:  merely 
in  leaving  us  his  portrait,  he  has  rendered  signal  service 
to  science.  Let  us  recall  the  part  played  by  the  statues 
of  the  tombs  in  the  theological  conceptions  of  the 
Egyptians :  they  were  the  indispensable  support  of  the 
double,  the  body  without  which  the  soul  of  the  dead 
person  could  not  exist  in  the  other  world.  It  might  be 
thought  that  in  passing  from  life  in  this  world  to  that 
beyond  the  tomb,  the  people  to  whom  beauty  had  been 
chary  might  not  have  been  sorry  to  assume  a  new 
appearance ;  if  we  are  to  be  re-born,  it  is  better  to  be 
re-born  less  ugly.  The  care  that  poor  Khnoumhotpou 
has  taken  to  reach  us  deformed  shows  that  the  old 
Egyptians  did  not  hold  our  views  on  the  subject:  they 
desired  to  remain  always  as  nature  created  them  at  the 

See  the  curious  study  of  Dr.  Parrot,  "  Sur  I'origine  d'une  des 
formes  du  dieu  Phtah,"  in  the  "  Recueil  de  travaux  relatifs  a 
la  philologie  et  a  I'archdologie  egyptiennes  et  assyriennes,"  vol.  ii., 
pp.  129-33. 

87 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


moment  of  conception.  It  was  not  absence  of  coquetry 
on  their  part,  but  necessity:  their  idea  of  the  soul 
compelled  them  so  to  act.  From  the  moment  that  their 
personality  was  indissolubly  bound  up  with  the  existence 
of  the  body,  the  first  condition  imposed  on  them  for 
remaining  identical  with  themselves  after  death,  as  before, 
was  to  preserve  their  earthly  form  intact.  In  order  that 
the  Khnoumhotpou  who  dwelt  in  the  hypogeum  of 
Saqqarah  might  not  be  a  different  being  from  the 
Khnoumhotpou  who  walked  through  the  streets  of 
Memphis,  it  was  necessary  that  his  disincarnated  double 
should  find  there  the  support  of  a  statue  of  a  dwarf.  Give 
him  the  fine  proportions  of  Ti  or  Ranofir,  the  proud 
bearing  and  haughty  mien  of  the  Cheikh-el-Beled,  even  the 
more  common  type  of  the  Crouching  Scribe,  he  would 
not  have  known  what  to  do.  His  substance,  poured,  so 
to  speak,  into  the  exiguous  and  deformed  mould  of  the 
dwarf,  could  never  have  adapted  itself  to  the  new  mould 
into  which  the  artist  would  have  tried  to  cast  it. 
Khnoumhotpou  beautified  would  no  longer  have  been 
Khnoumhotpou ;  his  tomb,  without  the  statue  of  a  dwarf, 
would  only  have  sheltered  a  double  and  a  support  strangers 
to  each  other. 

It  was  then  the  likeness,  and  the  absolute  likeness, 
that  the  artist  had  to  seek  to  reproduce,  and  the  seriousness 
and  scrupulousness  with  which  he  rendered  the  deformity 
of  his  model  is  thus  explained.  The  Egyptians  were 
scoffers  by  nature,  and  liked  to  mingle  the  comic  with 
the  serious,  not  only  in  literature  but  in  the  arts.  To  take 
only  one  example :  the  painter  who,  at  Thebes,  pictured 
the  interment  of  Nofrihotpou,  has  drawn,  by  the  side  of 
the  large  boats  laden  with  mourners  and  all  the  apparatus 
of  grief,  the  contortions  of  two  sailors  whose  shallop 

88 


The  Dwarf  Khnoumhotpou 


was  brutally  struck  by  the  oars  of  the  funerary  barque. 
If  the  sculptor  who  chiselled  Khnoumhotpou  had  been 
free  to  follow  his  natural  inclination,  he  would  probably 
have  exaggerated  certain  features  and  given  the  unfor- 
tunate creature  a  slightly  absurd  physiognomy.  His 
religious  conscience  would  not  permit  him  to  risk  anything 
of  the  kind :  a  statue  uglier  than  nature  would  have 
been  as  inconvenient  to  the  soul  of  the  original  as  a  statue 
more  beautiful  than  nature.  A  body  of  stone  identical 
at  all  points  with  the  body  of  flesh  was  what  the 
Egyptian  demanded,  and  that  is  exactly  what  the  sculptor 
fashioned  for  the  httle  Khnoumhotpou.  We  see  here 
that  what  we  call  the  question  of  art  is  subsidiary :  a 
stone-cutter  who  understood  his  business  sufficed  for  all 
that  was  required. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  concluded  from  what  precedes 
that  I  regard  the  portrait  of  Khnoumhotpou  as  the  work 
of  a  mere  artisan.  It  has  been  too  often  repeated  that 
statuary  in  Egypt  was  a  mechanical  craft ;  sculptors  were 
taught  to  fashion  arms,  legs,  heads,  and  torsos,  and  to 
join  them,  according  to  the  formula,  in  imitation  of  two 
or  three  models  always  the  same.  That  opinion,  repeated 
by  the  Greeks,  is  fairly  difficult  to  uphold  in  the  presence 
of  the  statue  of  Knoumhotpou  ;  it  might  be  possible  to 
set  up  patterns  for  bodies  of  ordinary  formation,  but  all 
varieties  of  deformed  bodies  could  not  possibly  be  foreseen. 
The  unknown  master  whose  work  we  have  at  Boulaq 
proceeded  in  exactly  the  same  manner  as  a  modern 
sculptor,  the  necessities  of  whose  work  confronted  him 
with  a  deformed  model :  he  produced  a  work  of  art,  not 
the  task  of  a  mechanic. 


89 


X 


THE  FAVISSA  OF  KARNAK  AND  THE  THEBAN 
SCHOOL  OF  SCULPTURE* 

I 

A  LARGE  pool  among  the  ruins,  and  at  the  southern  end 
two  batteries  of  chadoufs,  one  on  top  of  the  other,  working 
to  exhaust  the  water  continually  renewed  by  the  infil- 
trations. On  the  banks  are  blocks  and  muddy  statues, 
round  which  half-naked  workmen  are  busily  occupied, 
beams,  levers,  coils  of  rope,  and  the  beginnings  of  a 
Decauville  line ;  remains  of  storied  walls  dominate  the 
workshops,  and  the  modern  village  of  Karnak  stands  out 
clearly  on  the  horizon  beyond  their  irregular  tops. 

When  the  first  Ptolemies  decided  at  the  beginning  of 
the  third  century  B.C.  to  restore  the  Theban  temple  of 
Amon,  they  found  it  encumbered  with  ex-votos.  Every- 
where, in  the  halls,  the  corridors,  the  court-yards,  there 
were  stelae,  stone  statues,  little  wooden  or  bronze  figures, 
sacred  or  royal  insignia,  heaped  up  one  on  the  other,  and 
in  such  quantities  that  there  was  no  space  for  new  ones. 
It  was  a  legacy  of  extinct  Dynasties  or  of  noble  families 
who  had  died  out,  to  whom  the  Pharaohs  had  granted  the 
privilege  of  consecrating  their  image  in  the  house  of  the 

*  Published  in  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne^  1906,  vol.  xx., 
pp.  247-52,  337-48. 

90 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


god,  and  to  sell  or  destroy  any  of  them  would  have 
been  to  commit  sacrilege.^'  They  were  dealt  with 
according  to  the  custom  of  the  contemporary  peoples :  a 
vast  pit  was  dug  between  the  seventh  pylon  and  the 
hypostyle  hall,  and  then  they  were  buried  pell-mell  in 
holy  ground.  Twenty  centuries  later,  in  1883,  hastily 
made  soundings  revealed  the  richness  of  the  site  to  me, 
but,  lacking  money,  I  could  not  venture  to  undertake 
anything.  It  was  not  until  1901,  when  the  regular  progress 
of  clearing  away  brought  the  workmen  to  the  spot,  that 
1  advised  M.  Legrain  to  dig  more  deeply  than  usual,  so 
that  nothing  which  was  hidden  beneath  the  earth  might 
escape  observation.  The  excavations  yielded  just  what  I 
had  foreseen,  royal  colossi  in  granite,  limestone,  sandstone 
which  were  restored  to  their  ancient  places  along  the 
pylon  ;  a  little  below  came  fragments  of  a  fine  limestone 
building  of  Amenothes  I  that  Thoutmosis  III  had  used 
for  banking  up  when  he  enlarged  the  temple ;  and  at  the 
very  bottom,  at  a  depth  of  over  six,  twelve,  fourteen  yards, 
what  none  of  us  had  thought  of,  an  intact  favissa  in  which 
hundreds  of  statues  and  small  objects  awaited  in  the  mud 
the  hour  of  their  deliverance. 

For  four  years  M.  Legrain  has  been  exploring  the  spot 
foot  by  foot,  and  I  think  he  has  succeeded  in  entirely 
emptying  it.  We  must  now  draw  up  the  inventory  of 
the  treasures  it  has  bestowed  on  us.  The  greatest  benefit 
conferred  by  them  is  assuredly  on  political  history.  All 
epochs  are  not  represented  in  equal  abundance — the  first 
Theban  Empire  is,  so  to  speak,  merely  mentioned,  and  the 
two  great  Dynasties  of  the  second  are  represented  only  by 
about  a  hundred  pieces — but  from  the  fall  of  the  Rames- 
sides  to  the  Persian  conquest  the  series  of  the  high  priests 

-  See  pp.  50-51. 
91 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

of  Amon  reappears  almost  complete,  with  their  wives, 
sons,  brothers,  the  children  or  latest  descendants  of  their 
brothers,  and  from  the  day  when  the  male  line  failed, 
the  princesses  who  inherited  its  rights,  with  the  noble 
persons  who  wielded  the  power  in  their  name.  However, 
the  large  find  all  at  once  of  statues  and  inscriptions  serves  not 
only  to  give  information  about  the  revolution  that  trans- 
formed the  military  kingdom  of  Thebes  into  a  theocracy, 
but  also  furnishes  documents  for  the  study  of  the  progress 
of  art  during  the  twenty  centuries  and  more  that  the 
revolution  took.  The  artistic  merit  of  the  objects  is  very 
unequal,  and  many  of  them  are  only  interesting  to  the 
archaeologist;  some,  however,  stand  out  distinguished 
above  the  mass,  and  take  their  rank  worthily  beside 
the  best  known  productions  of  Egyptian  art.  As  they 
come  from  the  same  temple,  and  have  been  erected  by 
different  members  of  the  same  families,  it  is  natural 
to  see  in  them  the  work  of  one  school,  established  at 
Thebes  in  far-off  antiquity.  Indeed,  a  unity  of  character 
common  to  all  is  easily  discerned,  which,  perpetuating 
itself  without  notable  change  from  generation  to  genera- 
tion, fixes  undeniable  affinities  of  conception  and  technique. 

II 

Setting  aside  a  few  stelae  in  which  the  arrangement 
is  bad  and  the  composition  coarse,^  the  most  ancient 
monuments  we  possess  of  that  school  are  those  discovered 
by  Carter  and  Naville  between  1900  and  1906  in  the  tomb 
of  Montouhotpou  V  at  Deir-el-Bahari.  The  bas-reliefs  of 
the  chapel  belonging  to  the  pyramid  are  as  correct  in  design 

*  See,  e.g.,  the  stelae  described  or  referred  to  in  Maspero,  "  Guide 
to  the  Cairo  Museum,"  1903,  pp.  73-5,  94-5,  96,  etc. 

92 


THE   WORKS  AT  KARNAK  IN  JANUARY,  1900. 


To  face  p.  94. 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


and  as  firm  in  touch  as  the  fine  Memphian  bas-reUefs 
of  the  Vth  or  Vlth  Dynasty ;  but  the  reUef  is  more 
accentuated,  the  outline  bolder  and  freer,  the  man  more 
thick-set,  and  more  firmly  placed  on  the  ground,  the 
woman  of  a  more  slender  figure,  with  larger  hips  and  a 
more  ample  bosom.  The  statue  of  the  king  which 
is  in  the  Cairo  Museum  was  cut  in  the  sandstone  with 
a  bold,  firm  chisel.  The  feet  and  knees  are  thick,  the 
hands  massive,  the  bust  indicated  in  summary  fashion, 
the  face  boldly  modelled.  The  colour  is  harsh,  the  flesh 
black,  the  costume  white,  the  cap  red,  according  to  the 
ritual  of  the  ceremonies  for  which  it  was  destined  ;  the 
whole  has  an  aspect  of  barbarism,  but  a  premeditated 
barbarism,  having  regard  to  the  religious  effect  to  be 
produced.  If  a  Memphian  sculptor  had  treated  a 
similar  subject,  he  would  not  have  failed  to  harmonize 
the  lines  and  soften  the  colour:  unconsciously  he  would 
have  fused  its  type  with  the  softer  type  of  human 
physiognomy  that  prevailed  in  his  school,  at  the  risk 
of  enfeebling  its  energy.  The  Theban  sculptor,  on  the 
contrary,  exerted  himself  above  all  to  reproduce  the  truth 
as  it  revealed  itself  to  him,  and  that  preoccupation  is 
dominant  to  the  end  with  all  of  his  school.  They  sought 
the  likeness  with  the  intention  of  exaggerating  rather  than 
of  softening  the  individual  features  of  the  subject,  and 
in  order  to  attain  it,  did  not  shrink  from  roughness  of 
execution  nor  violence  of  colour:  they  often  fell  into 
barbarism,  but  scarcely  ever  into  banality. 

When,  under  the  Xllth  Dynasty,  Thebes  became  one 
of  the  capitals  of  Egypt,  its  kings  sometimes  employed 
local  artists,  sometimes  called  in  sculptors  imbued  with 

*  Already  published  in  the  Micsee  Egyjdien,  vol.  ii.,  PI.  IX-X, 
pp.  25-30. 

93 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  Memphian  tradition  from  Heracleopolis  or  the  Fayoum. 
Chance  has  preserved  for  us  two  colossal  heads,  one  of 
Sanouosrit  I  (Ousirtasen),^  discovered  by  Mariette  in  the 
ruins  of  Abydos,  the  other  of  Sanouosrit  III,  extracted 
by  M.  Legrain  from  the  pit  at  Karnak.  The  handicraft 
is  excellent  in  both  cases,  and  seldom  has  this  unpro- 
mising stone  been  worked  with  greater  skill,  but  the 
inspiration  of  the  whole  is  different.  Here  are  two 
persons  of  the  same  race,  and  the  general  resemblance 
is  sufficient  to  set  aside  any  doubt:  for  if  it  were  not 
there,  we  should  be  tempted  to  see  in  each  a  sovereign 
of  a  different  Dynasty.  The  first  belongs  to  a  school 
inspired  by  the  Memphian  tradition :  the  sculptor  has 
idealized  or,  if  preferred,  symbolized  his  model,  and  has 
given  it  the  short  full  oval,  the  smiling  good-humoured 
face  that  the  school  adopted  for  official  statues  of  the 
Pharaohs.  The  second,  on  the  other  hand,  copied  the 
features  without  softening  a  single  one ;  the  face  is  long 
and  thin,  the  brow  narrow,  the  cheek-bones  prominent, 
the  jaw  bony  and  heavy.  He  has  hollowed  the  cheeks, 
surrounded  the  nose  with  two  deep  furrows,  tightened  the 
lower  lip  and  projected  it  into  a  contemptuous  pout ;  he 
has  realized  a  strong  work,  whereas  the  other,  penetrated 
by  opposite  principles,  has  only  evolved  from  the  stone 
an  agreeable  composition,  but  one  lacking  individuality. 

The  contrast  between  the  two  methods  is  less  striking 
in  the  bas-reliefs  than  in  the  statues.  Among  the 
fragments  used  by  Thoutmosis  III  for  filling  up  is 
a  square  pillar  emanating  from  a  limestone  building  of 

The  head  was  reproduced  by  Rouge-Banville,  "  Album  photo- 
graphique,"  Nos.  111-12  ;  cf.  Mariette, "  Monuments  divers,"  PL  XXI, 
a,  b,  c,  and  p.  299  ;  the  whole  is  reproduced  in  the  Musee  Egyptien^ 
vol.  ii.,  PI.  XIII,  and  pp.  34-5. 

94 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 

Sanouosrit  I.  The  Pharaoh  is  seen  on  one  of  the  sides 
accompanied  by  Phtah.  They  are  there,  the  sovereign 
and  the  god,  face  to  face,  breathing  each  other  s  breath, 
according  to  the  etiquette  of  greeting  between  persons 
equal  in  rank.  The  style  greatly  resembles  that  of  the 
Memphian  school,  but  when  examined  more  closely, 
peculiarities  of  the  Theban  school  are  to  be  distinguished. 
The  contours  are  firmly  fixed,  the  relief  is  less  flat,  and 
consequently  the  shadows  less  thin,  and  thus  the  outline  of 
the  figures  stands  out  more  strongly  against  the  back- 
ground than  in  the  pictures  of  Gizeh  or  Saqqarah : 
a  Memphian  would  perhaps  have  displayed  more  elegance, 
but  would  have  remained  true  to  convention.  The  scenes 
engraved  on  the  other  three  sides  also  present  the  char- 
acteristics of  Theban  art,  and  it  is  a  pity  that  the 
fragment  is  so  far  unique.  If  the  rest  of  the  temple  was 
decorated  in  the  same  happy  fashion,  the  XlVth 
Dynasty  encouraged  at  Thebes  a  work  comparable  to 
the  finest  of  the  XVIIIth  or  XlXth  on  the  porticoes 
of  Deir-el-Bahari,  in  the  sanctuary  of  Gournah,  and  in 
the  Memnonium  erected  by  Setoui  I  at  Abydos. 

Ill 

It  is  with  the  statues  of  the  XVIIIth  Dynasty  dis- 
covered at  Karnak  by  M.  Legrain  as  with  those  of  the 
Xllth:  directly  we  look  at  them  we  notice  distinctive 
signs  of  the  school,  with  modifications  that  are  explained 
when  we  consider  the  position  of  Thebes  at  that  period. 
The  favourite  residence  of  the  Pharaohs  and  per- 
manent seat  of  their  government,  its  prosperity  was 
continually  increased  by  the  booty  gained  in  Syria  or 
Ethiopia,  and  as  wealth  increased,  so  did  the  taste  for 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

building.  Not  only  did  the  kings  never  tire  of  em- 
bellishing the  city,  but,  following  their  example,  private 
individuals  built  sumptuous  palaces  and  tombs  there. 
For  so  much  activity  a  large  supply  of  artists  was 
needed :  studios  multiplied,  sculptors  came  from  all  parts 
of  the  country  to  supplement  the  few  Theban  sculptors. 
Those  strangers  did  not  join  the  local  school  without 
exercising  some  influence  on  it:  it  was  subdivided  into 
several  branches,  each  of  which,  while  preserving  a 
common  ground  of  precepts  and  habits,  soon  assumed 
its  personal  physiognomy.  We  already  know  two  or 
three  of  them,  but  how  many  must  there  have  been 
during  the  three  centuries  that  the  Dynasty  lasted,  all 
the  work  of  which  is  lost  for  us  or  confused  with  the 
mass  ? 

I  like  to  attribute  to  the  same  studio,  besides  a 
certain  number  of  pieces  recently  acquired  by  the  Cairo 
Museum,  three  of  the  best  fragments  extricated  by  M. 
Legrain  from  the  favissa,  the  Thoutmosis  III,  the  I  sis, 
and  the  Sanmaout.  The  Thoutmosis  III  is  in  a  very 
supple  schist  that  allows  the  most  delicate  chiselling,  and 
no  engraving  can  do  justice  to  the  delicacy  of  the  model- 
ling :  the  play  of  the  muscles  is  discreetly  noted,  but 
with  extraordinary  sureness,  and,  the  imperceptible 
shadows  it  produces  varying  in  proportion  as  we  walk 
round  the  figure,  the  aspect  of  the  physiognomy  seems 
to  change  from  moment  to  moment.  Isis  was  not  of 
royal  birth,  and  perhaps  came  from  one  of  the  lower 
strata  of  society :  five-and-twenty  years  ago  her  existence 
was  not  suspected,  and  the  Karnak  statue  in  pink  granite 
is  the  first  portrait  we  have  of  her.  It  is  through  her, 
however,  that  Thoutmosis  III  possesses  the  features 
by  which   he   differs  from   his  predecessors,  the  large 

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BUST   OF  THOUTMOSIS  III. 
Grey  Schist. 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


aquiline  nose,  wide-opened,  almost  protruding  eyes,  full 
mouth,  rounded  face.  The  heavy  wig  he  wears  made 
the  sculptor's  task  difficult ;  so  much  the  greater  then 
is  the  merit  in  conceiving  a  work  before  which  we  pause, 
even  by  the  side  of  the  preceding  one.  It  contains  all 
the  characteristics  of  the  Theban  school,  the  seeking 
after  the  personal  expression,  the  sincerity  of  the  render- 
ing, the  width  of  the  shoulders  and,  as  a  set-ofF,  the 
intentional  smallness  of  the  waist  between  the  ample 
breasts  and  broad  hips.  Study  of  the  composition  com- 
pels us  to  attribute  it  to  the  same  studio,  if  not  to  the 
same  artist  to  whom  we  owe  the  statue  of  Thoutmosis 
III.  1  think  the  same  about  the  group  representing 
Sanmaout  and  the  little  princess  Naferouriya  whose 
steward  he  was :  nothing  could  be  less  conventional  than 
the  free,  firm  gesture  with  which  he  holds  the  child,  or 
the  posture  of  trusting  abandon  with  which  she  leans 
against  his  breast.  The  frankness  of  the  movement  well 
harmonizes  with  the  spiritual  gentleness  of  the  face  and 
the  smile  that  animates  the  eyes  and  the  full  lips. 
Sanmaout  was  Queen  Hachopsouitou's  major-domo,  and 
his  sovereign  had  authorized  him  to  erect  his  statues  in 
the  temple  of  Amon.  After  examining  those  that 
remain  to  us,  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  they  all  come 
from  one  of  the*  royal  studios,  most  probably  the  one 
whence  came  later  the  statues  of  Thoutmosis  and  his 
mother  Isis. 

And  we  have  direct  proof  that  the  Theban  sculptors 
of  that  period  tried  above  everything  to  make  sure  of  the 
likeness.  They  drew  their  subject  over  and  over 
again  before  definitely  making  the  rough  sketch,  and 
the  dry  climate  of  Egypt  has  preserved  many  of 
their  cartoons.    Cartoon  is  not  exactly  the  term,  since 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


they  used  fragments  of  limestone  for  their  studies, 
but  the  word  ostraca  by  which  they  are  designated 
is  not  much  better,  and,  further,  is  only  intelligible  to 
expert  Egyptologists.  Hundreds  of  them  have  found 
their  way  to  the  Cairo  Museum,  and  they  show  the 
attempts  of  the  artist,  his  hesitations  and  corrections,  the 
variations  of  his  thought  and  of  his  hand,  down  to  the 
moment  when  he  became  absolute  master  of  his  model. 
More  than  once,  too,  the  chances  of  excavation  have 
brought  the  model  itself  to  light,  and  provided  us  with 
the  means  of  comparing  the  portrait  with  the  original. 
That  is  the  case  with  Thoutmosis  III.  His  mummy 
was  found  in  1881  in  the  favissa  of  Deir-el-Bahari 
and  is  exhibited  with  the  others  in  the  Gallery  of  Sove- 
reigns in  the  Cairo  Museum.  The  face  has  certainly 
greatly  changed  in  course  of  mummification,  and  the 
shrunken  flesh,  the  sunken  eyes,  the  flattened  nose,  and 
the  discoloured  skin  make  him  very  different  from  what 
he  was  formerly.  But  if  the  superficies  has  changed,  what 
is  beneath  has  endured :  if  we  compare  the  profile  of  the 
face  with  the  mask  of  the  statue,  we  must  admit  that 
they  are  identical,  with  the  addition  of  the  life,  the  expres- 
sion of  which  was  perpetuated  by  the  sculptor. 

Let  us  skip  a  century  and  a  half,  and  transport  our- 
selves to  the  last  years  of  the  Dynasty:  they  have 
bequeathed  us  several  pieces  that  must  be  related  to  a 
common  origin :  the  fine  woman's  head  that  Mariette 
called  Taia,  the  Khonsou  and  the  Amon  of  Harmhabi,^ 
the  Toutanoukhamanou,  and  perhaps  also  the  statuette  in 
petrified  wood  extracted  from  the  favissa  by  Legrain  in 
1905.    Is  not  a  portrait  of  Ai  to  be  recognized  there  ? 

*  See  article  on  this  group  by  Legrain  in  the  Musee  Egyptien, 
vol.  ii.,  pp.  1-14  and  PL  I-IV. 

98 


SANMAOUT  AND  THE  PEINCESS  NAFEROURIYA. 
Black  granite. 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


It  is  broadly  treated  despite  its  restricted  dimensions,  but 
the  unfortunate  material  employed  did  not  allow  the 
artist  to  go  far  as  regards  execution :  the  likeness  remains 
uncertain.  But  it  preserves  the  mark  of  the  school,  and 
various  details  in  the  nose,  mouth,  the  cut  of  the  eyes, 
the  inset  of  the  eyebrows,  lead  me  to  think  that  we  shall 
probably  be  right  in  attributing  it  to  the  group  of  artists 
to  whom  we  owe  the  Khonsou  and  the  Toutanoukhamanou. 
I  am  certain  that  they  come  from  the  same  hand,  and  an 
instant's  examination  will  prove  it.  The  two  figures  might 
almost  be  superimposed :  the  eye  is  hollowed  out  in  an 
identical  amount  in  both,  the  attachment  of  the  nose  is 
similar,  and  so  is  the  way  of  slightly  inflating  the  nostrils 
and  of  dilating  the  middle  of  the  lips  and  compressing 
the  corners.  The  physiognomy  has  something  ailing  in  it, 
but  the  indications  of  ill-health,  the  obliquity  and  bruised 
appearance  of  the  eyes,  the  thinness  of  the  cheeks  and 
neck,  the  prominence  of  the  shoulder-bones,  are  more 
perceptible  in  the  Khonsou  than  in  the  Toutanoukha- 
manou ;  we  might  say  that  the  model  of  the  Khonsou, 
if  it  is  not  Toutanoukhamanou  at  a  more  advanced  age, 
had  a  more  visible  tendency  to  consumption.  A  doctor 
should  study  them  both :  he  alone  could  decide,  if,  as  I 
imagine,  they  represent  a  sick  man,  and  possibly  he  could, 
according  to  the  external  aspect  of  the  subject,  establish 
the  exact  diagnosis  of  the  disease. 

The  similarities  are  less  marked  in  the  head  called 
Taia,  and  they  are  not  at  once  noticeable  in  the  en- 
graving: but  they  are  clear  to  those  who  have  studied 
the  originals.  In  a  slighter  degree  all  the  details  I  have 
noted  in  Khonsou  and  Toutanoukhamanou  are  there :  the 
queen  is  not  a  sick  woman,  but  the  different  parts  of  her 
face  are  treated  in  the  same  way,  and  the  hand  which 

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sculptured  them  is  that  which  so  dehcately  chiselled  the 
portraits  of  the  god  and  the  Pharaoh,  its  contemporaries. 
Even  when  only  the  queen  was  known,  her  strange  physi- 
ognomy greatly  excited  the  imagination  of  scholars. 
Mariette,  who  discovered  her,  thought  her  a  stranger  to 
Egypt ;  he  identified  her  with  Tiyi,  the  wife  of  Amen- 
othes  III,  and  declared  her  to  be  Syrian,  Hittite,  Armenian, 
and  his  opinion  long  prevailed.  We  know  now  that  her 
date  is  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  century  after  Tiyi,  and  that 
she  represents  the  wife  or  mother  of  Harmhabi,  one  of 
the  Pharaohs  who  succeeded  the  heretical  sovereigns  of 
the  XVIIIth  Dynasty.  And  in  fact  the  portraits  of  Tiyi 
that  have  recently  emerged  from  the  earth  have  no  point 
of  likeness  with  that  of  Mariette's  queen.  They  present 
a  woman  of  a  thin  bony  type,  with  heavy  jaw  and  long 
depressed  chin,  a  low  receding  forehead,  the  physiognomy 
of  the  Pharaoh  Khouniatonou  with  which  the  bas-reliefs 
and  statues  of  El-Amarna  have  familiarized  us.  By  the 
form  and  expression  of  her  face  our  queen  is  allied  to 
the  family  of  Harmhabi  or  Toutanoukhamanou :  the  re- 
semblance of  her  statue  to  those  of  Legrain  would 
sufficiently  prove  it,  if  further  proof  were  required. 

And  now,  when  the  two  groups  I  have  just  described 
have  been  compared,  it  is  easily  admitted  that  the  inspira- 
tion and  technique  of  the  second  proceed  directly  from 
the  inspiration  and  technique  of  the  first.  Taste  fluctuated 
during  the  five  or  six  generations  that  divide  them,  and 
the  caprices  of  fashion  have  influenced  the  execution :  but 
the  general  characteristics  remain  unchanged,  and  their 
persistence  allows  us  once  again  to  assert  the  continuity 
of  the  school. 


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The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


IV 

It  maintained  its  flourishing  condition  during  the 
XlXth  Dynasty,  and  the  favissa  has  restored  to  us  works 
that  yield  in  nothing  to  those  of  the  preceding  age.  In 
my  opinion  the  best  is  a  mutilated  statue  of  Ramses  II, 
so  like  the  big  Turin  statue  in  pose  and  execution  that 
it  might  be  the  first  rough  draft  of  it,  or  the  exact 
smaller  copy.  A  few  pieces  of  the  XXth  Dynasty  are 
worthy  of  esteem  without  rising  far  above  mediocrity,  as 
in  a  little  group  in  granite  of  Ramses  VI  bringing  a 
Libyan  prisoner  to  the  god  Amon :  the  bearing  of  the 
victorious  Pharaoh  does  not  lack  pride,  the  constrained 
posture  of  the  barbarian  is  skilfully  noted,  and  the  move- 
ment of  the  miniature  lion  that  glides  between  the  two 
is  interpreted  with  the  customary  naturalness  of  the 
Egyptians  when  they  portray  animals.^  I  prefer  the 
priest  with  the  monkey,  or,  to  give  him  his  name, 
Ramses-Nakhouiti,  the  chief  prophet  of  Amon.  In  a 
crouching  posture,  with  calves  and  thighs  flat  on  the 
ground,  a  roll  spread  out  before  him  across  his  legs, 
bewigged  and  petticoated,  uncomfortable  in  his  robes  of 
ceremony,  with  an  air  of  abstraction  he  meditates,  or 
silently  recites  prayers  to  himself.  A  little  hairy  cyno- 
cephalus  perches  on  his  shoulders,  and  looks  at  him  over 
his  head :  it  is  the  god  Thot  who  is  revealed  in  this 
unusual  position,  and  it  was  difficult  to  co-ordinate  the 
beast  and  the  man  in  a  manner  that  should  be  neither 
absurd  nor  simply  ugly.  The  sculptor  has  come  out  with 
honour.    The  priest  slightly  bends  his  neck,  but  we  feel 

The  head  of  the  Pharaoh,  which  was  stolen  at  the  moment  of 
discovery,  has  been  found  since  this  article  appeared,  and  purchased  by 
the  Cairo  Museum,  1912. 

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that  the  beast  does  not  weigh  on  him :  the  monkey  on 
his  part  half  shrinks  behind  the  head-dress,  and  the  deep 
frown  of  his  face  prevents  the  mischievous  effect  that  the 
countenance  of  an  animal  above  a  human  face  might 
have  produced.  Like  the  group  of  Ramses  VI,  it  bears 
the  imprint  of  the  school,  but  with  notable  differences  of 
technique :  if  the  first  was  sculptured  in  one  of  the  royal 
studios,  the  second  comes  from  another  studio  of  which 
the  origin  can  be  indicated. 

We  know  how,  about  a  century  after  the  death  of  Ramses 
III,  the  pontiffs  of  Amon  made  themselves  masters  of  the 
whole  of  the  Thebaid :  while  a  new  Dynasty  established 
itself  at  Tanis  in  the  eastern  delta,  they  exercised  supreme 
authority  over  Southern  Egypt  and  Ethiopia,  sometimes 
with  the  title  of  high-priest,  sometimes  with  that  of  king, 
and  their  sacerdotal  house  was  the  seat  of  their  govern- 
ment. We  do  not  know  the  exact  site,  but  we  learn 
from  an  inscription  that  it  was  situated  near  the  seventh 
pylon,  not  far  from  the  spot  where  the  favissa  was  dug 
out.  It  is  probable  that  their  relatives  obtained  the 
privilege  from  them,  at  the  moment  they  assumed 
domination,  of  erecting  their  statues  in  the  temple.  The 
court-yard  between  the  seventh  pylon  and  the  hypostyle 
hall  contains  only  a  small  number  of  ex-voios :  they  chose 
it  as  the  place  in  which  to  consecrate  their  monuments, 
and  filled  it  in  the  course  of  generations.  What  has  come 
down  to  us  does  not  include  all  they  erected  in  their  own 
name  or  to  the  memory  of  those  they  loved.  Many 
statues  were  seized  or  destroyed  during  civil  or  foreign 
wars,  but  when  the  Macedonians  conquered  the  land 
enough  remained  for  more  than  five  hundred  to  be 
thrown  into  the  favissa.  A  large  number  of  artists  must 
have  been  needed  to  execute  so  many  commissions,  and, 

102 


THE  PEIEST   WITH   THE  MONKEY. 


To  face  p.  102. 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


besides  its  royal  studio,  Thebes  long  possessed  one  or 
several  pontifical  studios.  To  one  of  those  must  be 
assigned  the  man  with  the  monkey,  and  nearly  all  the 
statues  after  the  fall  of  the  Ramessides.  For  the  most 
part  they  have  a  real  value,  and  scarcely  yield  to  the  old 
royal  works,  such  as  the  limestone  statuette  of  Orsorkon  II, 
who  drags  himself  along  the  ground  and  offers  a  boat  to 
his  god,  the  fragments  of  which  have  disappeared.  We 
are  forced  to  confess,  however,  that  many  are,  if  not  bad, 
of  no  interest  for  the  history  of  art. 

The  usual  posture  did  not  lend  itself  to  elegance. 
They  are  nearly  all  crouching,  the  thighs  up  to  the 
chest,  the  arms  crossed  on  the  knees :  what  advantage 
was  to  be  obtained  from  an  attitude  that  reduced  a 
man  to  a  mere  packet  surmounted  by  a  head  ?  Where 
the  model  departed  from  the  hieratical  posture,  the 
qualities  of  the  school  are  revealed.  The  Ankhnasno- 
firiabre  en  Hathor  has  a  somewhat  strained  gracefulness  : 
it  would  almost  bear  comparison  with  the  Amenertaious 
so  much  admired  by  Mariette,  if  it  were  not  leaning 
against  a  big  ugly  pillar.  Perhaps  the  contrast  between 
the  slender  waist  and  the  inflated  bust  and  belly  is  too 
marked  in  the  Ankhnas,  but  the  composition  of  the  head 
is  irreproachable.  It  is  nearly  always  so  at  that  epoch : 
if  the  sculptors  sometimes  neglected  the  bodies  or  inter- 
preted them  ill,  they  cared  lovingly  for  the  heads.  Fine 
portraits  may  be  counted  by  the  score  among  the  statues 
found  in  the  favissa,  I  shall  only  give  two  here,  that  of 
Mantimehe  and  his  son,  Nsiphtah,  who  lived  under 
Taharkou  and  Psammetichus  I.  Thebes  was  then  under 
a  curious  government.  When  the  male  descendants  of 
the  priests  failed,  the  power,  and  those  sacerdotal  functions 
that  could  be  exercised  by  women,  passed  into  the  hands 

103 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

of  the  princesses:  one  of  them  was  elected,  who,  wedded 
to  the  god  in  a  mystic  marriage,  henceforth  enjoyed  the 
right  of  Uving  free  as  she  pleased.  To  assist  them  in 
the  government,  these  pallacides  of  Amon  had  major- 
domos,  who  often  filled  with  them  a  similar  role  to  that 
of  the  chief  minister  with  the  queens  of  Madagascar 
before  the  occupation  of  the  island  by  the  French. 
Mantimehe  and  his  son  are  the  best  known  of  these 
persons,  and  the  artists  to  whom  the  care  of  sculpturing 
their  portraits  was  entrusted  would  certainly  be  the  best 
among  those  of  the  sacerdotal  studio.  It  is,  in  fact, 
nature  itself,  and  no  master  of  a  former  age  could  have 
expressed  better  or  with  a  bolder  chisel  the  bustling 
vulgarity  of  the  father  and  the  aristocratic  inanity  of  the 
son.  The  second  Saite  period  and  the  beginning  of 
the  Greek  period  are  almost  entirely  unrepresented  in 
the  favissa ;  under  the  Persians,  distress  was  too  general 
for  artistic  matters  to  be  thought  of,  and  the  Macedonian 
rule  had  only  just  been  consolidated  when  the  common 
pit  was  dug.  A  granite  head,  of  hasty  workmanship 
but  dignified  appearance,  shows,  however,  that  the  Theban 
studio  followed  the  movement  that  prevailed  in  the 
schools  of  Lower  Egypt,  and  that,  doubtless  under  the 
influence  of  Greek  models,  it  gave  attention  to  details 
hitherto  neglected :  the  skull  is  studied  with  a  greater 
care  for  accuracy,  and  also  the  slight  accidents  of  the 
physiognomy,  the  furrows  of  the  forehead,  the  lines 
between  the  eyes  and  at  the  rise  of  the  nose,  the  falling 
in  or  puflftng  out  of  the  cheeks,  the  play  of  the  muscles 
round  the  nostrils  and  mouth.  The  sculptor  desired 
to  note  in  his  work  not  only  the  broad  lines  of  the  face, 
but  the  small  details  that  characterize  the  individual  and 
determine  his  personality. 

104 


OSORKON  II  OFFERING  A  BOAT  TO  THE  GOD  AMON. 


To  face  p.  104. 


The  Theban  School  of  Sculpture 


V 

It  is  a  long  time  since  I  undertook  to  distinguish,  under 
the  apparent  uniformity  with  which  Egypt  is  reproached, 
the  varieties  of  composition  and  conception  that  may  serve 
for  the  recognition  of  schools,  and,  in  the  work  of  the  schools, 
for  that  of  particular  studios.  I  have  not  found  it  difficult 
to  show  how  the  Memphian  manner  differs  from  the  Theban, 
nor  what  distinguishes  both  from  that  which  flourished  at 
Hermopolis,  Tanis,  Sais ;  but  for  the  lack  of  sufficiently 
numerous  documents,  I  had  not  succeeded  in  marking  out 
the  development  of  one  same  school  through  a  long  series  of 
centuries.  The  find  at  Karnak  gave  me  the  materials  I 
lacked,  and  since  M.  Legrain  has  been  exploiting  it,  I  have 
not  ceased  to  search  in  it  for  information  on  that  point.  I 
have  obtained  much  there,  sometimes,  it  is  true,  of  varying 
value,  and  I  have  still  much  to  learn  both  about  the  most 
ancient  periods  and  about  certain  moments  of  transition 
in  more  recent  periods.  I  believe,  however,  the  results 
already  obtained  are  sufficiently  important  and  significant  to 
compel  us  to  remodel  the  history  of  Egyptian  art.  I  have 
not  ventured  to  do  that  here,  but,  short  as  the  present  essay 
is,  it  may  clearly  be  seen  to  what  results  it  has  led  me.  I 
have  confirmed  the  fact  that  the  characteristics  of  Theban 
art  were  those  I  thought  I  recognized  at  the  beginning  of 
my  studies :  I  then  rapidly  noted  the  stages  that  the  art 
passed  through  from  the  moment  that  Thebes  awoke  to 
political  life  almost  to  that  when  it  ceased  to  exist  as  a 
great  city. 


105 


XI 


THE  COW  OF  DEIR-EL-BAHARl  * 

At  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  February  12,  1906,  while 
Naville  was  finishing  his  lunch,  a  workman  came  running 
up  to  tell  him  that  the  top  of  a  vault  was  beginning  to 
emerge  from  the  earth.  For  several  days  certain 
indications  had  led  him  to  think  that  a  discovery  was 
at  hand :  he  went  to  the  spot  and  at  once  saw  in 
the  mound  of  sand  that  dominated  the  back  porticoes 
of  the  temple  of  Montouhotpou  a  spectacle  that  filled 
him  with  joy.  The  vault  was  almost  half  dug  out ; 
under  it,  in  the  shade,  an  admirable  cow  extended  her 
neck,  and  seemed  to  look  about  her  curiously,  A  few 
hours'  work  sufficed  to  set  her  completely  free.  She 
was  intact,  but  a  little  figure  leaning  against  her  breast 
had  had  its  face  crushed  in  distant  ages,  and  the  violence 
of  the  blows  had  caused  a  crack  in  the  head  and  shoulders 
that  compromised  its  solidity.  The  chamber  that  sheltered 
the  cow  was  built  in  a  hollow  of  the  rock  with  slabs  of 
sculptured  and  painted  sandstone.  The  semicircular  ceiling 
did  not  present  the  usual  regular  vault  with  converging 
keystones  and  surfaces  ;  it  was  composed  of  a  double  row 
of  bent  blocks  cut  in  quarters  of  a  circle  and  buttressed  one 

*  Published  in  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne^  1907, 
vol.  xxii.,  pp.  5-18. 

106 


AMENOTHES  II  AND   THE  COW  HATHOR. 
(From  the  right-hand  side  of  the  group.) 


To  face  p.  106. 


AMEXOTHES  II  AND  THE   COW  HATHOR. 
Three-quarters  view. 


To:facej).  106. 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 


against  the  other  at  then-  upper  end.  It  was  painted  dark 
bhie  with  yellow  fiv^e-pointed  stars  scattered  over  it  to 
represent  the  sky.  The  three  vertical  partitions  were 
decorated  with  religious  scenes :  on  the  one  at  the  back 
Thoutmosis  III  worships  Amonra,  lord  of  Thebes,  and 
on  the  two  sides  he  makes  an  offering  to  Hathor,  who 
is  no  other  than  the  very  cow  shut  into  the  vault. 

She  was  still  half  buried  when  some  ten  inquisitive 
persons  turned  their  kodaks  on  her,  thus  despoiling  Naville, 
and  disputing  among  themselves  the  pleasure  of  being  the 
first  to  photograph  her.  In  the  evening  nothing  else  was 
talked  of  in  the  Louxor  hotels,  and  the  tourists  did  not  fail 
to  make  up  parties  to  go  and  admire  her  the  next  day. 
The  fellahs,  on  their  side,  related  the  most  marvellous  tales. 
She  had  breathed  noisily  just  at  the  moment  that  the  light 
of  day  touched  her,  and  had  shivered  in  all  her  limbs. 
She  had  directed  such  a  look  on  the  workman  who  had 
perceived  her  that  he  broke  his  leg  with  an  awkward 
blow  of  his  axe.  She  was  not,  as  she  seemed  to  be,  of 
stone,  but  of  fine  gold,  disguised  by  Pharaoh's  magicians 
in  order  to  keep  off  treasure-seekers :  a  few  formulas 
repeated  at  a  fixed  hour  with  the  prescribed  fumigations 
and  rites,  a  little  dynamite,  and  after  the  explosion 
the  fragments  would  be  transformed  into  ingots  of 
metal.  And  as  if  the  sorcerers  were  not  sufficient, 
dealers  in  antiquities  prowled  about  in  the  vicinity. 
Doubtless  she  was  too  heavy  for  them  to  think  of 
carrying  her  off  whole,  but  would  they  have  found  it 
very  difficult  to  detach  the  head  and  decamp  with  it 
during  the  night,  in  spite  of  the  vigilance  of  our 
guards  or  with  their  complicity  ?  Unscrupulous  amateurs 
are  never  far  to  seek,  ready  to  pay  heavily  for  a 
stolen    object,   provided    they   believe    it   to   have  an 

107 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

artistic  or  archaeological  value,  and  the  certainty  of 
gaining  hundreds  of  pounds  in  case  of  success  largely 
compensates  the  honest  brokers  of  Louxor  for  the 
petty  annoyance  of  disbursing  a  few  pence  by  way  of 
fine  or  of  undergoing  a  week's  imprisonment  if  they  are 
caught  in  the  act.  I  should  have  preferred  to  leave  the 
monument  in  its  ancient  place,  but  it  would  have  been 
tempting  fortune,  and  the  only  means  of  saving  it  was  to 
send  it  to  Cairo.  I  entrusted  the  matter  to  M.  Baraize, 
one  of  our  engineers,  and  he  carried  it  out  extremely  well : 
in  less  than  three  weeks  he  had  dismantled  the  blocks, 
packed  up  the  cow,  and  transported  the  cases  by  train 
across  the  Theban  plain.  The  chapel  is  now  rebuilt  in  a 
good  position  at  the  end  of  one  of  the  rooms  of  the 
Cairo  Museum,  but  the  goddess  is  not  hidden  in 
darkness  as  at  Deir-el-Bahari.  She  stands  at  the 
entrance,  her  body  in  the  full  light,  the  hinder  parts  a 
little  under  the  vault :  she  comes  forth  from  her  house 
and  shows  herself  freely  to  visitors,  from  the  snout  to 
the  end  of  the  tail.^' 

II 

Our  wonder  is  at  first  aroused  by  the  mixture  she 
presents  of  conventional  mysticism  with  realism.  The 
front  view  shows  only  the  head  surrounded  by  accessories, 
the  significance  of  which  is  only  appreciated  by  those  who 
are  learned  in  religious  matters.  At  the  top  of  the  com- 
position, between  the  tall  horns  in  form  of  a  lyre,  the 
usual  head-dress  of  goddess-mothers,  is  the  solar  disk  flanked 

She  is  noted  in  the  "  Livre  d'entree "  under  No.  38575  and 
the  chapel  under  No.  38576. 

108 


THE   COW  HATHOE. 
Cairo  Museum. 


To  face  p.  108. 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 

by  upstanding  feathers  and  stamped  with  an  inflated  uraeus. 
This  scaffolding  of  emblems  without  thickness  and  almost 
without  consistence  would  run  the  risk  of  being  broken 
by  the  slightest  blow  if  it  was  not  supported,  and  so  it 
rests  on  two  tufts  of  aquatic  plants,  the  stalks  of  which, 
rising  from  a  socket  near  the  hoofs,  spring  up  right  and 
left  of  the  legs  ;  flowers  alternating  with  buds  bend  over 
the  back  of  the  neck  and  form  a  fan-shaped  support  behind 
the  disk  and  feathers.    Under  the  snout,  and  as  if  framed 
by  the  vegetation,  is  the  statuette  of  a  man  standing,  his 
back  to  the  cow's  chest.    As  I  said,  the  face  is  mutilated, 
the  flesh  black;  he  stretches  out  his  hands,  palms  downward, 
in  front  of  him  with  a  gesture  of  submission,  as  if  avowing 
himself  the  humble  servant  of  Hathor:  by  the  uraeus  of 
the  crown  and  the  stiff  petticoat  spread  in  a  triangle  in 
front  of  the  thighs,  we  guess  him  to  be  a  Pharaoh.  He 
is  found  again  in  a  less  punctilious  attitude  under  the 
right  flank  of  the  statue.    He  is  kneeling,  naked,  and  his 
flesh  is  red ;  he  presses  the  teat  between  his  hands,  and 
drinks  greedily  of  the  sacred  milk.    If  we  may  believe 
the  cartouche  engraved  between  the  lotuses,  the  two  figures, 
the  black  and  the  red,  are  one  and  the  same  sovereign, 
Amenothes   II  of  the   XVIIIth  Dynasty,  and  perhaps 
that  is  the  case.    But  it  was  Thoutmosis  III  who  built 
the  chapel,  and  it  is  he  that  the  artists  have  represented 
twice  over,  praying  in  front  of  the  cow  and  sucking  the 
udder.    It  would  be  strange  if,  after  erecting  the  sanctuary, 
he  should  have  omitted  to  provide  it  with  his  goddess. 
It  is  more  probable  that  the  cow  was  commissioned  by 
him,  and  shut  up  there  by  his  order,  but  without  dedication 
or  cartouche :  he  considered  doubtless  that  the  neighbour- 
ing bas-reliefs  would  constitute  sufficient  title-deeds.  Later, 
Amenothes  II,  wishing  to  associate  himself  with  his  father's 

109 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

act  of  piety,  and  noticing  an  empty  space  behind  the 
coiffure,  inscribed  his  name  there. 

Such  a  complexity  of  figures  and  attributes  does  not 
tend  to  make  the  appreciation  of  the  work  easy  for  us, 
and  we  have  also  to  add  the  prescriptions  of  the  ritual  to 
the  conventions  of  the  craft  from  which  Egyptian  artists 
were  never  free,  at  least  when  stone  was  their  material : 
the  belly,  tail,  legs,  all  the  lower  parts  of  the  group,  are 
enclosed  in  a  stone  partition  which  spoils  the  effect  even 
while  it  preserves  them  from  the  chances  of  breakage. 
And  yet,  despite  defects  that  shock  a  sculptor  of  our  time, 
one  glance  suffices  to  reveal  the  extraordinary  beauty  of 
the  work.  The  head  differs  from  that  of  our  European 
cows,  but  it  is  a  question  of  race,  and  whoever  has  seen  the 
Soudanese  cow  of  the  present  day  will  easily  distinguish 
its  features  in  the  Hathor  of  Deir-el-Bahari :  the  fullness 
of  the  brow,  the  subtle  modelling  of  the  temples  and 
cheeks,  the  gentle  widening  out  of  the  snout,  the  supple- 
ness of  the  nostrils,  and  the  smallness  of  the  mouth.  Such 
accuracy  of  detail  will  delight  the  naturalist,  but  it  might 
be  feared  that  it  would  harm  the  artistic  value  of  the 
whole.  That  is  not  the  case  at  all,  and  if  at  a  distance 
the  physiognomy  seems  to  have  only  an  expression  of 
gentleness  and  meditative  somnolence,  as  soon  as  we  go 
near  it  assumes  an  air  of  intelligent  attention.  The  eye 
seems  to  grow  larger  and  to  follow  the  visitor  who  arrives, 
the  snout  to  contract  and  palpitate,  as  if  to  scent  out.  The 
sculptor,  instead  of  following  the  tradition  and  polishing  the 
stone  as  highly  as  possible,  has  respected  the  fine  furrows 
of  the  chisel,  and  the  light  playing  on  them  gives  at 
moments  the  illusion  of  a  shudder  running  over  the  skin. 
The  body  is  of  equally  accurate  composition,  the  chest 
narrow,  shoulders  thin,  spine  long  and  saddle-backed,  leg 

110 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 


long  and  slender,  the  thigh  sinewy,  the  haunches  prominent, 
the  udder  only  slightly  developed.  The  hinder  part  is 
worked  with  an  incredible  fidehty.  Contrary  to  custom, 
the  coat  is  red-brown,  darker  on  the  back,  lighter,  of  a 
tawny  shade  that  becomes  white,  on  the  belly  ;  it  is  speckled 
with  black  spots,  like  flowers  with  four  petals,  which  we 
should  consider  artificial,  if  there  were  not  animals  of 
Soudanese  origin  in  the  Egyptian  herds  of  to-day  that 
show  similar  markings.  By  those  spots  they  recognize 
among  the  heifers  of  the  year  the  one  in  which  Hathor 
has  deigned  to  become  incarnated,  and  which  must  be 
worshipped  as  long  as  she  remains  on  earth. 


Ill 

She  was,  above  all,  the  divinity  of  the  dead.  The 
buildings  scattered  about  that  corner  of  the  necropolis 
were  not  exclusively  consecrated  to  the  gods  of  the  living ; 
they  were  the  chapels  attached  to  royal  tombs,  some  of 
which,  like  that  of  Montouhotpou,  were  contiguous  to 
the  tomb,  while  others,  like  that  of  Queen  Hachopsouitou, 
for  example,  were  relegated  to  the  other  side  of  the 
mountain,  in  the  Biban-el-Molouk.  The  sovereigns  were 
sometimes  praying  and  bringing  offerings  to  the  gods, 
sometimes  associated  with  them  and  taking  part  in  their 
sacrifices.  Hathor,  ruler  of  the  West  and  lady  of  the 
heaven,  had  become  by  a  concourse  of  ideas,  the  reasons 
of  which  can  be  understood,  the  mistress  of  souls  and 
doubles :  she  played  thus  a  part  of  great  importance  in 
places  where  the  worship  of  her  vassals  was  celebrated. 
Walk  through  the  halls  of  the  large  terraced  temple  and 
you  will  find  her  repeatedly  with  the  figure  and  posture 
assumed  by  her  in  the  oratory  discovered  by  Naville :  she 

111 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

is  the  foster-mother  whose  milk  Thoutmosis  and  Hachop- 
souitou  are  greedily  imbibing.  The  suckling  of  the  sovereign 
was  not  a  mere  metaphor  of  language,  realized  and  tran- 
scribed on  stone,  but  a  material  act  borrowed  from  the 
customs  of  Egyptian  law,  and  the  final  formality  of  the 
ceremonies  of  the  adoption.  The  woman  who  had  no  son 
to  perpetuate  her  memory,  and  desired  to  have  one,  after 
reading  the  preliminary  passages,  had  to  offer  one  of  her 
breasts,  in  all  probability  the  right,  to  the  youth  or  man 
she  had  chosen  ;  he  would  press  the  teat  between  his  lips 
for  a  few  seconds,  and  by  this  pretence  of  feeding  would 
become  to  her  as  a  son.  Among  half  civilized  peoples 
where  this  custom  prevails,  it  is  not  required  that  the 
woman  has  been  or  is  still  married :  only,  the  young  girl 
who  acquires  a  child  by  this  method  covers  her  breast  with 
a  thin  stuff  before  going  through  the  ceremony.  If,  then, 
Thoutmosis  III,  or  by  usurpation  Amenothes  II,  was 
represented  kneeling  under  the  right  teat  of  the  Hathor, 
he  wished  thereby  to  prove  that  she  was  his  divine  mother, 
and  the  complacent  manner  in  which  she  yields  him  her 
milk  sufficiently  shows  that  she  admitted  the  legitimacy 
of  his  claim. 

But  these  are  only  half  the  ideas  expressed  by  the 
group,  and  it  remains  for  us  to  determine  the  meaning 
of  the  flowering  lotuses  which  stand  at  the  right  and  left. 
As  sovereign  of  the  West  and  of  the  lands  in  which  the 
dead  sojourned,  she  assumed  different  forms  according 
to  the  provinces.  In  the  North  the  people  imagined  her 
under  the  aspect  of  one  of  those  fine  sycamores  which 
grow  in  the  midst  of  the  sand  on  the  borders  of  the 
Libyan  Desert,  rendered  green  and  thick  by  the  hidden 
waters  sent  them  by  the  infiltrations  of  the  Nile.  The 
mysterious  path  which  leads  to  the  shores  of  the  West 

112 


AN  UNKNOWN  FIGURE  AND  THE   COW  HATHCK. 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 


brings  the  doubles  to  her  feet ;  as  soon  as  they  are  arrived, 
the  divdne  soul,  lodged  in  the  trunk,  thrust  out  the  half 
or  the  whole  of  her  body,  and  offered  them  a  vase  full  of 
pure  water  and  a  tray  filled  with  loaves.  If  they  accepted 
her  gifts — and  they  could  scarcely  refuse  them — they 
confessed  at  once  that  they  were  her  vassals  ;  they  were 
no  longer  authorized  to  return  to  the  living,  but  the 
regions  of  the  world  beyond  the  tomb  would  open  to 
them.  In  the  nomes  of  the  Said  where  she  was  imagined 
to  be  a  cow,  she  haunted  a  fertile  marsh  situated  on  the 
slopes  of  the  Libyan  mountains  ;  whenever  a  double  came 
to  its  edge  she  stretched  forth  her  head  from  among  the 
herbage  to  meet  him,  and  claimed  his  homage,  and  when 
he  had  paid  it,  she  allowed  him  to  enter  the  realms  of 
the  funereal  gods.  The  186th  Chapter=^  of  the  "Book  of 
the  Dead,"  a  very  favourite  one  with  devout  persons 
under  the  second  Theban  Empire,  initiates  us  into  this 
myth,  and  the  vignette  that  precedes  it  shows  us  the 
scene  as  the  Egyptians  conceived  it :  the  red  or  yellow 
slopes  of  the  mountain,  the  tufts  of  aquatic  plants,  the 
cow  conferring  with  the  defunct.  The  Pharaoh  who 
commissioned  our  group — or  rather  the  sculptor  who 
executed  it — combined  the  idea  common  to  all  with  the 
royal  concept  of  the  adoption  by  the  goddess,  and  he 
expressed  the  result  therefrom  as  completely  as  the  pro- 
cesses of  his  art  permitted.  He  reduced  the  marsh  to 
two  slender  clusters  of  lotus,  and  marked  the  two  chief 
points  of  the  adoption  by  means  of  two  little  royal 
figures  and  their  attributes.  The  first,  as  we  have  seen, 
wears  the  costume  of  the  Pharaohs  and  has  black  flesh  ; 
standing  upright  under  the  animal's  snout,  it  faces  the 
spectator.     Amenothes  II  has  just  arrived  in  front  of 

*  Naville,  "  Das  Thebanische  Todtenbuch,"  vol.  i.,  PI.  GCXXII. 

113  H 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  cow  and  addressed  to  her  the  prayer  in  which  he 
conjures  her  to  aid  him  in  his  journey  in  search  of  the 
everlasting  cities  ;  his  colour  indicates  that  he  is  still  the 
slave  of  death,  but  the  goddess  has  already  enrolled  him 
among  her  adherents,  and  presents  him  to  the  universe 
as  her  well-beloved  son.  That  formality  over,  he  slips 
through  the  verdure,  kneels  down,  and  crushing  the  teat 
in  his  hand,  greedily  puts  his  lips  to  it.  That  is  the  final 
rite  of  the  adoption,  and  also  the  pledge  of  his  return 
to  normal  existence.  Scarcely  has  he  swallowed  the  first 
mouthfuls  of  milk  than  life  enters  his  veins ;  the  artist 
has  represented  him  naked  as  a  new-born  infant,  and 
painted  his  flesh  red,  the  colour  of  the  living. 

IV 

The  two  forms  of  Hathor  welcoming  the  dead  are  not 
each  confined  to  the  province  in  which  it  was  born.  They 
gradually  spread  over  the  whole  country,  not  without 
experiencing  diverse  fortunes.  Hathor  in  the  tree  was 
reserved  for  papyri,  stelae,  and  bas-reliefs.  The  first  idea 
was  scarcely  suitable  for  statuary,  and  the  cleverest 
sculptor  would  have  been  embarrassed  to  derive  a  large 
tree  from  the  stone,  a  goddess  lost  in  the  branches,  a 
person  in  prayer  before  the  tree  and  before  the  goddess. 
But  it  lent  itself  to  painting,  and  some  of  the  vignettes  in 
which  it  is  expressed  in  the  excellent  copies  of  the  "  Book 
of  the  Dead  "  or  on  the  walls  of  the  Theban  hypogeums, 
show  us  the  admirable  way  in  which  the  designers  of  the 
new  empire  used  it.  Nothing  could  be  more  varied  or 
skilful  than  the  relations  they  establish  between  the 
woman  and  the  sycamore  on  the  one  hand  and  the  dead 
person  on  the  other.    He  is  sometimes  accompanied  by 

114 


PETESOMTOUS  AND  THE  COW  HATHOR. 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 


his  soul,  a  big  hawk  with  human  head  and  arms,  which 
mimics  his  shghtest  gestures :  while  the  double  receives 
the  elixir  of  youth  in  his  clasped  hands,  the  soul  turns 
a  runnel  aside  for  his  own  benefit,  and  greedily  drinks 
from  it.  Colour  adds  its  charm  to  the  composition,  and 
the  replicas  of  the  subject  to  be  seen  at  Cheikh  Abd-el- 
Gournah  in  the  hypogeums  of  the  XVIIIth  and  XlXth 
Dynasties  would  obtain  a  place  of  honour  in  our  museums, 
if  it  was  permitted  to  detach  them  and  mount  them  in 
separate  panels. 

Hathor  in  the  marshes  was  entirely  suited  to  the 
ordinary  conditions  of  sculpture,  and  if  in  some  places 
serious  difficulties  were  presented,  I  have  indicated  how 
the  Theban  masters  overcame  them.  She  provided  a  fairly 
frequent  theme  for  the  studios,  and  the  Cairo  Museum 
possesses  three  examples.  They  are  smaller  than  the  Deir- 
el-Bahari  group,  and  do  not  unite  the  two  concepts  of 
the  adoration  and  the  adoption.  Consequently  the  lotus 
is  wanting  and  the  dedicatory  figure  at  the  cow's  udder. 
They  are  the  affair  of  simple  private  persons  who  had 
no  right  to  proclaim  themselves  children  of  the  goddess. 
If  they  had  attempted  to  touch  the  breast  of  Hathor 
they  would  have  usurped  one  of  the  privileges  of  royalty ; 
they  appear  then  only  once  in  each  group,  standing  or 
crouching  in  front  of  the  chest.  In  one,  which  is  in 
grey  schist  and  measures  nearly  four  and  a  half  feet  long, 
the  donor  has  lost  his  head  and  neck,  and  he  lifts  up 
a  table  of  offerings  with  both  hands  in  front  of  him ;  the 
cow  also  is  decapitated.^  No  trace  of  inscription  is  to 
be  seen  on  the  pedestal,  but  the  composition  is  that  of 

*  It  comes  from  Tell  Tmai,  and  is  entered  in  the  "  Livre  d'entree  " 
under  No.  38930,  and  in  the  Guide  to  the  Museum,"  3rd  English 
edition,  under  No.  461,  p.  164. 

115 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


the  first  Saite  period.  The  piece,  although  not  the  most 
mediocre  that  could  be  found,  lacks  originality ;  it  is  the 
work  of  a  skilful  journeyman  who  had  no  personal  inspira- 
tion, and  only  knew  how  to  apply  the  formulas  of  the 
school  conscientiously.  The  second  group  is  in  yellowish 
limestone.  It  measures  not  quite  three  feet  in  length 
and  has  suffered  more  than  the  preceding  one.^  Not 
only  has  the  animals  head  been  destroyed,  but  its  tail 
and  one  of  its  hind  legs  have  vanished.  The  man  is 
mutilated  to  the  point  that  only  one  of  his  feet  remains 
to  prove  to  us  that  he  was  kneeling.  He  bore  a  table 
of  offerings.  An  inscription  engraved  on  the  edge  of  the 
pedestal  informs  us  that  he  was  called  Petesomtous, 
and  the  name,  together  with  the  style,  takes  us  back  to 
the  Saite  period,  perhaps  to  the  period  of  the  Persian 
domination.  The  composition  is,  besides,  sufficiently 
rough,  and  it  would  not  deserve  any  attention  if  the 
interest  of  the  subject  did  not  compensate  for  its  insigni- 
ficance as  a  work  of  art. 

The  third  was  celebrated  from  the  moment  of  its 
discovery.  It  is  in  green  schist,  slightly  over  three  feet 
in  length,  and  under  it  in  height.  It  was  found  by 
Mariette  at  Saqqarah,  fifty  years  ago,  in  the  tomb  of  a 
certain  Psammetichus,  a  contemporary  of  the  first  Nec- 
tanebo.t  It  was  accompanied  by  two  fine  statues  of 
Osiris  and  Isis,]:  which  are  the  glory  of  the  Cairo  Museum, 
and  we  owe  them  for  a  certainty  to  the  same  artist.  The 

*  No.  38932  in  the  "  Livre  d'entree"  ;  cf.  Notice  des  principaux 
monuments  du  Musee  de  Gizeh,"  1893, p.  86,  and  No.  683  of  Borchardt's 
unpublished  catalogue.    The  monument  comes  from  Saqqarah. 

f  Guide  to  the  Cairo  Museum,"  3rd  edition,  pp.  331-33,  No.  1020  ; 
"  Livre  d'entree,"  No.  38927. 

I  Guide  to  the  Cairo  Museum,"  3rd  edition,  p.  330,  Nos.  1018,  1019  ; 
"  Livre  d'entree,"  Nos.  38928,  38929. 

116 


PSAMMETICHUS  AND   THE   COW  HATHOK. 
Three-quarters  view. 


To  fare  p.  110. 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 

posture  of  the  cow  is  the  same  as  that  of  Deir-el-Bahari ; 
like  her,  the  head-dress  is  formed  of  the  solar  disk  with 
the  uraeus  surmounted  by  two  long  feathers,  but  a 
monait  fastened  round  the  neck  by  its  chain  lies  flat 
on  the  spine.  Psammetichus  stands  under  the  head,  his 
back  to  the  chest,  his  hands  hanging  down  over  the 
apron,  with  the  same  gesture  of  submission  as  that 
of  Amenothes  II.  Besides  his  name  and  protocol, 
the  inscriptions  contain  a  prayer  for  his  happiness,  ad- 
dressed to  the  benevolent  Hathor.  The  hardness  of  the 
material  has  prevented  the  sculptor  from  completely  free- 
ing the  fragile  parts  :  the  cow's  legs  and  belly  are  sunk 
in  the  stone,  as  are  the  back  and  feet  of  the  man ;  the 
head-dress  is  supported  by  a  semi-cone  set  in  the  back 
of  the  neck,  and  the  ears  are  reinforced  by  a  pad  which 
doubles  their  thickness.  The  sculptor,  embarrassed  by  the 
necessity  of  preserving  masses  of  superfluous  material, 
had  the  ingenious  idea  of  treating  the  lower  limbs  as  a 
bas-relief.  He  has  designed  them  on  each  side  of  the 
panel  that  supports  the  belly,  so  that  Hathor  has  two 
chest  profiles  and  a  double  supply  of  legs.  He  has  so 
cleverly  arranged  this  superabundance  of  legs  that  it  is 
not  noticeable  at  a  first  glance,  and  some  effort  of  thought 
is  required  to  make  sure  that  it  exists.  But  despite  these 
eccentricities  the  work  is  of  rare  perfection.  Never  has 
such  hard  stone  been  manipulated  with  greater  supple- 
ness ;  the  outlines  have  a  harshness  that  all  the  virtuosity 
of  the  execution  has  not  been  able  to  prevent,  but  the 
modelling  of  the  bodies  and  the  faces,  both  of  the 
animal  and  of  the  man,  is  of  unparalleled  delicacy,  and  the 
whole  breathes  serenity  mingled  with  melancholy.  It  is, 
as  a  piece  of  animal  sculpture,  the  best  that  has  come 
down  to  us  in  Saite  art. 

117 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


V 

Nevertheless,  it  loses  when  compared  with  the  schist 
group  of  the  time  of  Amenothes  II.    The  mythological 
element  is  less  predominant,  and  the  head  gains  by  not 
being  framed  by  two  tufts  of  aquatic  plants :  but  if  the 
religious  convention  is  less  encumbering,  the  artistic  con- 
vention and  the  conventions  of  the  studio  come  out  in  a 
much  more  apparent  fashion.   The  Saqqarah  group  belongs 
to  the  Memphian  school,  and,  as  with   nearly  all  the 
products  of  that  school,  the  form  has  something  artificial 
and  impersonal.     Hathor  is  a  symbolic  cow,  the  half- 
abstract  type  of  Egyptian  cows,  a  type  that  in  the  eyes 
of  the  Memphians  realized  the  ideal  of  the  earthly  or 
sacred  cow  :  she  has  the  elegance,  but  also  the  softness 
and  the  rather  insipid  meekness,  which  distinguishes  the 
human  figures.    The  Hathor  of  Naville,  on  the  contrary, 
belongs  to  the  Theban  school,  and  possesses  the  charac- 
teristics that  I  have  described  above.  ^    The  royal  studio 
whence  it  came  was  governed  by  the  theological  laws,  and 
was  forbidden  to  modify  in  any  way  the  types  that,  in 
the  course  of  ages,  had  been  determined  on  for  revealing 
the  concepts  of  popular  tradition  or  learned  dogma,  but 
it  tried  to  keep  their  expression  as  near  to  life  as  the 
rites  authorized.    The  artist  who  produced  the  Memphian 
Hathor  chose  a  pattern  from  his  cartoons,  and  translated 
it  into  stone  without  troubling  to  correct  the  banal  purity 
by  imitating  a  beast  of  the  sacred  herd.    The  sculptor  to 
whom  we  owe  the  Theban  Hathor,  on  the  contrary,  while 
preserving  the  ritual  arrangement  of  the  parts  and  the 
accumulation  of  the  symbols,  has  placed  them  on  a  real 

^  See  the  Eeviie,  1906,  vol.  xx.,  pp.  241-52,  and  pp.  337-46  ;  and 
pp.  90-105  of  the  present  volume. 

118 


The  Cow  of  Deir-el-Bahari 


cow,  on  the  cow,  perhaps,  that  for  the  moment  incarnated 
the  goddess  in  the  neighbouring  temple  of  Queen  Hach- 
opsouitou.  Imagine  her  without  the  emblematic  sur- 
roundings he  was  compelled  to  give  her — the  heavy 
head-dress,  the  lotus  tufts,  the  two  statuettes  of  the 
Pharaoh — and  you  will  have  the  good  motherly  creature 
who  goes  peaceably  to  pasture,  and,  as  she  goes,  observes 
everything  with  her  eye,  inquisitive  and  dreamy  at  the 
same  time.  Neither  Greece  nor  Rome  has  left  us  any- 
thing that  can  be  compared  with  it;  we  must  go  to  the 
great  sculptors  of  animals  of  our  own  day  to  find  an 
equally  realistic  piece  of  work. 


119 


XII 


THE  STATUETTE  OF  AMENOPHIS  IV 

{The  Louvre) 

The  statuette  originally  formed  part  of  a  group.  The 
lower  part  has  been  fairly  skilfully  restored  in  modern 
times :  the  upper  comes  from  the  Salt  collection,^  and, 
like  most  of  the  objects  of  that  collection,  was  found  at 
Thebes.  It  represents  Amenophis  IV  of  the  XVIIIth 
Dynasty,  the  first  in  date  of  the  Pharaohs  we  are  accus- 
tomed to  name  the  heretic  kings. 

In  making  only  a  cursory  examination  we  are 
struck  by  the  ways  in  which  it  differs  from  the  royal 
statuettes  that  have  come  down  to  us.  The  Pharaohs  are 
usually  seated  with  the  head  erect,  the  bust  firm,  in  a 
posture  of  stiff  dignity  which  did  not  lack  grandeur. 
Here  the  royal  stiffness  has  almost  wholly  disappeared. 
The  head  leans  slightly  forward,  the  bust  sinks  down,  it 
seems  as  if  the  body,  powerless  to  hold  itself  up,  is  going 
to  slip  off  the  seat ;  the  abandon  of  the  posture  is  in 
entire  harmony  with  the  character  of  the  person.  The 
back  is  slightly  rounded,  the  hips  are  larger  than  are 
suitable  for  a  man,  the  belly  and  chest  inflated ;  the 
breasts  are  round  like  those  of  a  woman,  the  puffed-out 

*  It  was  catalogued  by  Champollion  in  his  Notice  descriptive  des 
monuments  egj^ptiens  du  Musee  Charles  X,"  Paris,  1827,  p.  55,  No.  11. 

120 


AMENOPHIS  IV. 
The  Louvre. 


To  face  p.  120. 


Amen6phis  IV 


torso  is  wrinkled  in  folds  of  fat,  the  face  is  weak  and 
good-natured.  In  all  that,  the  artist  has  set  aside  the 
sesthetie  rules  usual  in  Egypt.  If  it  were  not  for  the 
awkward  angle  formed  by  the  arm  that  holds  the  sceptre 
and  the  whip,  and  the  bad  execution  of  the  hand  that 
rests  on  the  left  thigh,  his  work  might  be  quoted  as  an 
excellent  specimen  of  what  a  conscientious  sculptor  could 
do  at  the  best  moments  of  Theban  art  between  Thout- 
mosis  III  and  Setoui  I. 

I  do  not  believe  that  in  the  long  series  of  Pharaohs 
there  is  a  prince  who  has  been  so  badly  treated  by  con- 
temporary scholars  as  he  has  been,  and  about  whom  they 
have  allowed  greater  rein  to  their  imagination.  At  first, 
the  roundness  of  his  body  and  the  exaggeration  of  his 
breast  caused  him  to  be  taken  for  a  woman :  for  a  long 
time  Champollion  characterized  him  as  a  queen,  and  was 
only  convinced  of  his  error  with  difficulty.  Later,  Mariette 
thought  he  recognized  in  him  the  exterior  signs  of  a 
eunuch.  Contemporary  monuments  assign  him  a  wife 
and  children,  and  we  can  find  a  way  of  reconciling  this 
embarrassing  posterity  with  the  new  theory.  It  suffices 
to  suppose  that,  after  having  been  married  and  become 
the  father  of  four  daughters,  he  went  to  war  with  one  of 
those  African  tribes  that  have  preserved  to  this  day  the 
custom  of  castrating  their  prisoners :  having  fallen  into 
their  hands,  he  would  have  left  them  as  we  see  him. 
Some  Egyptologists  have  accused  him  of  being  an  idiot, 
the  more  moderate  only  regard  him  as  a  fanatic.  Born 
of  a  foreign  mother,  the  white  Taia,  brought  up  by  her 
to  worship  Canaanitish  deities,  he  had  scarcely  ascended 
the  throne  before  he  wished  officially  to  replace  the 
worship  of  Amon  by  that  of  the  solar  disk,  whose 
Egyptian  name,  Aton,  perhaps  reminded  him  of  the  Syrian 

121 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

name  Adoni  or  Adonai.  This  story  is  well  imagined,  but 
to  me  it  seems  more  than  doubtful.  Two  proofs  have 
been  advanced  concerning  the  foreign  origin  of  Taia :  the 
pink  colour  of  her  cheeks  and  the  curious  form  of  the 
names  used  in  her  family.  The  flesh  of  Egyptian  women 
was  always  painted  pale  yellow:  if  Taia  is  pink,  it  is 
because  she  was  fairer  than  they,  and  consequently  of 
exotic  birth.  The  argument  was  specious,  but  it  is  not 
permissible  to  repeat  it  to-day.  For  it  has  been  discovered 
that  in  the  time  of  Amenophis  II  and  Amenophis  III 
the  artists  for  some  years  employed  pink  tones  for  the 
flesh  of  their  personages,  both  men  and  women,  and  the 
confirmation  of  that  fact  takes  away  any  value  from 
the  reasoning  deduced  from  Taia's  colour.  Taia  has  pink 
flesh  in  the  monuments  because  the  fashion  of  the  day 
required  that  she  should  so  have  it,  and  not  because  she 
possessed  the  fair  complexion  of  the  northerner.  As  to  the 
names  of  the  members  of  her  family,  louaa,  Touaa,  they 
do  not  seem  to  me  to  be  Asiatic.  Doubtless  they  are 
not  constructed  in  the  Theban  manner,  but  they  are 
found,  and  many  like  them,  in  the  tombs  of  the  Ancient 
Empire.  Far  from  proving  a  Canaanitish  or  Libyan  ex- 
traction, they  take  us  back  to  the  oldest  periods  of  the 
history  of  Egypt  and  denote  a  Memphian  or  Heliopolitan 
origin. 

If,  as  everything  indicates,  Taia  is  not  a  foreigner,  we 
no  longer  have  any  cause  to  seek  beyond  Egypt  for  the 
motives  that  made  Amenophis  IV  decide  to  proscribe  the 
worship  of  Amon.  In  fact,  the  religion  of  Aton  that  he 
professed  is  indigenous  in  its  formulas  and  ceremonies. 
Aton  is  the  solar  disk,  the  shining  globe  lighted  every 
morning  in  the  east  in  order  to  be  extinguished  every 
evening  in  the  west ;   for  some  theologians  it  was  the 

122 


Amenophis  IV 


visible  body  in  which  Ra,  the  solar  god  pm^  eoocellencey 
was  the  soul;  for  others  the  actual  god,  and  not  the 
shining  manifestation  of  the  god.  The  Theban  priesthood 
had  adopted  the  first  theory,  which  better  harmonized 
with  its  monotheistic  tendencies,  and  it  had  developed  it 
to  the  utmost:  it  had  fused  together  all  the  forms  of 
the  divinity,  and  only  recognized  in  it  the  aspects,  the 
diverse  conditions  of  one  and  the  same  being  who  was  the 
soul  of  the  Sun,  Amonra.  The  schools  of  Memphis  and 
Hehopolis,  older  than  those  of  Thebes,  had  remained  more 
closely  attached  to  the  ancient  polytheism,  and  interpreted 
its  doctrines  in  a  more  material  sense.  A  fact  that,  so 
far,  no  one  has  ever  brought  forward,  proves  incontestably 
that  the  worship  rendered  by  Amenophis  IV  to  Aton  was 
connected  with  that  of  the  sun  as  practised  at  Heliopolis : 
the  high  priest  of  Aton,  the  supreme  head  of  the  royal 
religion,  bore  the  same  official  name  and  the  same  titles 
as  that  of  Ra  at  Heliopolis. 

If,  however,  the  monuments  tell  us  that  the  worship 
of  Aton  was  a  form  of  the  most  ancient  worship  of  Ra, 
they  do  not  so  far  assist  us  to  determine  the  points 
of  detail  in  which  it  differed.  The  solar  disk  of 
Amenophis  IV,  the  supreme  god  Aton,  is  recognized  by 
the  rays  terminating  in  hands  that  he  darts  on  the  earth : 
the  hands  brandish  the  anserated  cross,  and  bring  life  to 
everything  that  exists.  I  am  not  sure  that  Amenophis  IV 
invented  this  imagery :  I  like  to  think  that  in  that,  as  in 
everything,  he  was  bound  to  follow  tradition.  The  prayers 
that  accompany  the  figure  of  the  god,  the  ceremonies 
celebrated  in  his  name,  are  all  Egyptian;  they  present 
that  character  of  seriousness  and  sometimes  of  licence  to 
be  observed  at  Denderah,  and  in  all  the  places  where  the 
sombre  myth  of  dead  Osiris  does  not  rule.     The  bas- 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

reliefs  that  have  preserved  its  physiognomy  for  us  might 
serve  as  an  illustration  for  the  picture  drawn  by  Herodotus 
of  the  great  festival  of  Bubastis. 

Having  said  that,  it  may  be  asked  what  motives 
impelled  Amenophis  IV  to  deny  the  gods  of  his  fore- 
fathers and  to  embrace  a  Heliopolitan  religion.  It  should 
be  noted  at  once  that  his  father,  Amenophis  III,  had 
already  set  the  example  of  a  special  affection  for  solar 
worships  other  than  that  of  Amon :  we  may  then  believe 
that  Amenophis  IV  as  a  child  was  brought  up  in 
particular  devotion  for  Ra,  and  that  later,  a  natural 
result  of  his  early  education,  he  was  desirous  of  imposing 
his  favourite  deity  on  his  subjects.  But  I  do  not  think 
that  religious  faith  was  the  sole,  or  even  the  principal 
reason  of  his  cruel  persecution  of  the  priests  and  par- 
tisans of  Amon ;  politics  probably  were  chiefly  responsible. 
Amon  was,  above  all,  the  patron  of  Thebes :  he  had 
made  the  greatness  of  the  Theban  Dynasties,  and  they, 
in  their  turn,  had  exalted  him  above  all  his  compeers. 
The  conquests  in  Syria  and  Ethiopia  had  not  been 
without  benefit  for  Egypt  in  general,  but  they  had  been 
specially  advantageous  to  Amon;  the  greater  part  of  the 
booty  had  passed  into  his  coffers,  his  priests  filled  the  public 
offices,  and  his  chief  prophet  was  the  highest  personage  of 
the  empire  after  the  reigning  sovereign.  Had  there  been 
under  Thoutmosis  IV  an  attempt  similar  to  that  which 
delivered  the  last  Ramessides  to  the  pontiffs  of  Amon 
and  which  raised  Hrihor  to  the  throne  ?  I  do  not  know ; 
but  I  believe  the  desire  to  counterbalance  their  power 
weighed  heavily  in  the  favour  shown  by  Amenophis  III 
to  other  divinities,  and  that  a  definite  wish  to  overturn 
not  only  Amon,  but  especially  his  clergy,  induced 
Amenophis  IV  to  thrust  Aton  into  the  first  rank.  He 

124 


Amenophis  IV 


did  not  recoil  from  any  means  that  would  lead  to 
success.  As  the  destiny  of  Amon  was  indissolubly  bound 
up  with  that  of  Thebes,  so  long  as  Thebes  was  the 
capital,  Amon  and  his  priests  would  keep  the  supremacy. 
Amenophis  IV,  after  changing  his  name,  which  was  a 
profession  of  faith  in  the  excellence  of  Amon,  for  that  of 
Khounaton,  "splendour  of  Aton,"  founded  a  new  capital 
which  he  called  the  city  of  Aton ;  he  installed  there 
a  new  priesthood  which  he  richly  endowed,  and  then 
erased  the  name  of  Amon  from  all  the  monuments 
throughout  Egypt  and  even  at  Thebes.  But  the  worship 
of  Amon  had  its  roots  too  deeply  implanted  in  the  land, 
and  his  priests  were  too  powerful,  for  the  king  to  prevail 
against  them.  When  he  was  dead,  his  successors  gave 
up  the  struggle :  Aton  returned  into  obscurity,  his  city 
was  deserted,  and  the  name  of  the  king,  proscribed  by 
sacerdotal  hatred,  vanished  with  the  buildings  on  which 
it  had  been  engraved. 

His  attempt  was  not  without  influence  on  art.  The 
necropolis  of  El-Amarna  has  told  us  the  names  of  two 
of  the  sculptors  who  helped  to  adorn  the  city  during  its 
brief  existence.  Their  works  are  distinguished  from 
earlier  ones  by  a  greater  freedom  of  composition,  and 
particularly  by  greater  realism  in  the  reproduction  of 
the  persons.  The  Amenophis  IV  of  the  Louvre  does 
honour  to  their  talent ;  it  is  the  more  valuable  since 
their  works,  treated  with  great  ferocity  by  the  Theban 
reaction,  have  become  very  rare.  We  have  a  certain 
number  of  bas-reliefs  more  or  less  mutilated,  but  very 
few  statues ;  that  of  the  Louvre  is,  so  far,  a  unique 
work  of  its  kind. 


125 


XIII 


FOUR  CANOPIC  HEADS  FOUND  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF 
THE  KINGS  AT  THEBES* 

Among  the  principal  objects  discovered  by  Theodore 
Davis  in  1907  in  the  Valley  of  the  Kings,  in  the  secret 
chamber  w^here  the  heretic  Pharaoh  Khouniatonou  v^as 
buried  with  an  equipment  partly  consisting  of  objects 
that  had  belonged  to  his  mother,  Tiyi,  there  are  four 
alabaster  Canopic  jars  of  a  rare  perfection  even  for  that 
period  of  perfect  execution.  The  body  of  the  jar  is  a 
little  longer  than  is  usual,  slender  at  the  base,  bulging 
out  at  the  top,  with  a  polish  at  once  unobtrusive  and 
pleasing  to  the  eye.  An  inscription  had  been  engraved 
on  it,  and  so  far  as  may  be  judged  by  the  place  it  occupied, 
was  the  ordinary  dedication  to  the  deities  protecting  the 
entrails ;  but  it  has  been  effaced,  then  the  place  smoothed 
over,  and  tinted  with  the  colour  of  the  surrounding  part. 
The  touching  up  is  accomplished  with  so  much  skill  that 
we  can  only  here  and  there,  beneath  the  transparence  of 
the  glazing,  guess  at  a  few  marks  of  the  old  writing.  The 
four  lids  are  in  the  form  of  a  human  head,  a  very  refined 
head  framed  in  the  short  wig  with  close  rows  of  little  flat 
locks  of  hair :  a  golden  urseus,  now  vanished,  stood  on  the 

*  Published  in  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne,  1910,  vol. 
xxviii.,  pp.  241-52. 

126 


Four  Canopic  Heads 


forehead.  As  the  face  is  beardless,  and  the  whole  of  the 
equipment  except  the  coffin  bears  the  name  of  Tiyi,  the 
Canopic  jars  have  been  attributed  to  the  queen.  I  do  not 
share  that  opinion ;  I  maintain  that  they  belonged  to  the 
Pharaoh,  and  that  we  should  see  his  authentic  portrait 
in  them. 

No  one  who  has  seen  the  four  heads  side  by  side  will 
doubt  that  they  represent  one  and  the  same  person.  The 
insignificant  differences  to  be  noticed  between  them  are 
caused  by  unimportant  technical  details,  or  by  breakages 
in  the  stone,  or  by  the  action  of  damp,  or  the  different 
way  in  which  time  has  treated  the  materials  of  which  the 
eyes  were  formed.  The  eyebrows  consist  of  a  fillet  of 
blue  enamel  encrusted  on  the  edge  of  the  arch,  and  the  eye, 
properly  so-called,  is  also  designated  by  a  blue  fillet,  which 
includes  a  cornea  in  white  limestone,  relieved  with  red 
at  the  corners,  and  an  iris  of  black  stone.  In  some,  the 
eyebrow  is  gone.  In  others  the  iris  has  fallen,  leaving 
blind  one  or  both  the  eyes,  or,  the  whole  having  been 
displaced,  the  eye  has  been  brought  forward  as  if  the 
person  was  suffering  from  the  beginning  of  an  exophthalmic 
goitre.  Very  different  expressions  of  countenance  are  the 
result,  but  under  them  all  the  same  face  is  quickly 
recognized :  a  longish  oval,  rather  thin  at  the  bottom,  a 
somewhat  narrow  forehead,  a  straight  nose,  thin  where  it 
joins  the  face  and  turned  up  at  the  end  almost  like 
Roxelana's,  delicate  wide-opened  nostrils,  the  sides  thin 
and  nervous,  a  short  upper  lip,  a  small  but  full  mouth, 
a  bony  chin,  pointed  and  heavy,  joined  to  the  neck  by  a 
rather  harsh  line.  None  of  the  heads  have  been  entirely 
respected  by  time,  and  one  of  them  has  lost  its  nose,  but 
by  good  luck,  rare  in  archaeology,  the  best  in  composition 
is  also  that  which  has  suffered  least:  if  the  enamel  of 

127 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


the  eyelids  is  wanting,  the  eyes  are  intact  and  the 
epidermis  without  scratches.  I  do  not  think  that  there 
exists  in  the  Egyptian  sculpture  of  that  period  a  more 
energetic  or  living  physiognomy:  the  mouth  is  closed  as 
if  to  retain  the  words  that  desire  to  escape,  the  nostrils 
are  inflated  and  palpitate,  the  eyes  look  keenly  and 
frankly  into  those  of  the  visitor.  With  age,  the  alabaster 
has  taken  on  the  dull  complexion  of  the  great  Egyptian 
ladies,  always  protected  by  the  veil,  which  the  sun  can 
never  burn.  So  that  it  is  not  surprising  that  many 
should  have  felt  in  looking  at  them  that  they  were  heads 
of  a  woman,  and,  knowing  the  circumstances  of  the 
discovery,  imagined  that  they  saw  the  most  celebrated 
woman  there  had  then  been  in  the  Egyptian  Empire, 
the  queen-dowager  Tiyi. 

Strictly  speaking,  that  is  quite  possible,  for  on  the  one 
hand  the  head-dress  and  necklace  into  which  the  neck  fits 
are  common  to  both  sexes,  and  on  the  other,  the  features, 
more  accentuated  than  is  usual  with  a  woman,  are  not 
so  to  the  point  of  only  fitting  a  man;  directly,  however, 
they  are  compared  with  those  of  the  portraits  of  Tiyi, 
we  are  bound  to  confess  that  the  resemblance  is  slight. 
Two  types  of  these  have  come  down  to  us.  In  the 
first,  which  is  by  far  the  most  frequent,  her  face  was 
remodelled  and  symbolized  in  the  studios  of  Thebes  in 
accordance  with  the  customary  formula  for  queens.  The 
colossal  group  of  Medinet  Habou,  recently  transported  to 
the  Cairo  Museum,  offers,  perhaps,  the  best  example. 
There,  following  the  regulations,  Tiyi  is  furnished  with  a 
round,  regular  face,  almond-shaped  eyes,  good  cheeks, 
straight  nose,  smiling  mouth,  and  normal  chin :  there  is 
something  about  her  which  prevents  us  from  confusing 
her  with  the  other  princesses  of  her  era,  but  she  has  pre- 

128 


To  face  p.  128. 


Four  Canopic  Heads 

served  none  of  the  peculiarities  that  compose  her  actual 
physiognomy.  That  is  no  longer  the  case  with  the  most 
individual  of  the  specimens  of  the  second  type,  the  soap- 
stone  head  that  Petrie  discovered  at  Sina:i,  which  is  now 
in  the  Cairo  Museum.  The  right  wing  of  the  wig  is 
wanting,  and  the  nose  has  been  crushed  by  an  unfortu- 
nate blow  on  ^the  left  nostril,  without,  however,  losing 
anything  of  its  essential  form  ;  a  cartouche  engraved  on 
the  front  of  the  head-dress  tells  us  the  name,  and  at  the 
first  glance  the  portrait  gives  the  impression  of  a  good 
likeness.  It  is  not  flattering.  If  we  are  to  believe  it,  Tiyi 
presented  the  racial  characteristics  of  the  Berbers  or  of 
the  women  of  the  Egyptian  desert:  small  eyes  puckered 
at  the  temples,  a  nose  with  a  broad  tip  and  contemptuous 
nostrils,  a  heavy,  sulky  mouth  with  turned-down  corners, 
the  lower  lip  dragged  back  by  a  receding  chin  like  that 
of  a  semi-negress  :  the  receding  chin  alone  forbids  us  to 
identify  her  with  the  original  of  our  Canopic  jars.  They 
have  certainly  a  family  likeness,  and  it  could  not  be 
otherwise,  for  if  I  am  right  it  is  a  question  of  mother 
and  son,  but  variations  are  to  be  noted  in  the  son  which 
remove  him  from  the  type  so  clearly  revealed  in  Petrie's 
statuette.  That  type,  on  the  contrary,  is  preserved  intact 
in  the  admirable  head  in  painted  wood  which  has  passed 
into  the  collection  of  Herr  Simon  of  Berlin.  We  might 
even  say  that  it  is  exaggerated,  and  that  the  eyes  are 
more  oblique,  the  cheek-bones  more  prominent,  the  nose 
more  aggressive,  the  smiling  muscles  more  sharply 
evident,  the  mouth  and  chin  closer  to  that  of  a  negress. 
I  believe  it  to  be  one  of  Tiyi's  granddaughters  who 
became  queen  after  the  fall  of  the  Heretic  Dynasty  : 
her  head-dress,  which  was  originally  that  of  a  private  person, 
was  afterwards  modified  to  receive  the  insignia  of  royalty. 

129  I 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

Was  she  married  to  Harmhabi,  to  Ramses,  or  to  Setoui 
I  ?  The  deviation  between  the  group  to  which  she  belongs 
and  that  of  the  Canopic  jars  is  sufficiently  great  to  force 
us  to  give  up  the  idea  that  they  represent  one  person. 
In  addition,  our  Canopic  sculptures  possess  only  one  urseus 
on  the  forehead,  as  is  customary  with  kings,  while  the 
others  have  the  double  urseus  which  then  begins  to  be 
the  etiquette  with  queens.  That  rule  has  exceptions,  and 
therefore  I  shall  not  deduce  too  strict  conclusions  from  it : 
but  the  absence  of  the  second  uraeus  is  not  less  a  some- 
what strong  presumption  in  favour  of  the  opinion  that  our 
Canopic  heads  are  those  of  a  man  and  not  of  a  woman. 

If,  however,  they  are  portraits  of  a  man,  the  circum- 
stances of  their  discovery  compel  us  to  declare  that  he 
must  be  the  king  Khouniatonou  ;  but  how  are  we  to  be 
convinced  of  this  when  we  remember  the  grotesque  sil- 
houette that  the  sculptors  of  El-Amarna  have  given  him  ? 
To  believe  them,  he  would  have  been  physically  a  sort 
of  degenerate,  tall,  weakly,  with  hips  and  chest  like  a 
woman's,  a  neck  without  consistency,  an  absurd  head,  a 
flat,  almost  non-existent  forehead,  an  enormous  nose,  an 
ugly  mouth,-  a  massive  chin.^  He  seems  to  have  liked  these 
caricatures,  and  his  friends,  imitating  him  from  a  desire 
to  flatter  him,  altered  more  or  less  the  shape  of  their  own 
bodies  in  order  that  they  might  resemble  that  of  his. 
Documents  of  different  origins  prove,  however,  that  he 
was  not,  or  had  not  always  been,  the  queer  figure  that  is 
attributed  to  him.  The  Louvre  alone  possesses  two  such 
witnesses.  The  first,  which  came  to  the  Museum  in  its 
early  days,  is  a  charming  statuette  in  yellow  soapstone. 
The  king  is  seated,  but  he  has  lost  the  bottom  of  the  legs, 
which  a  modern  restorer  has  skilfully  replaced.    He  wears 

*  See  pp.  120-125. 
130 


To  face  p.  139. 


Four  Canopic  Heads 

the  coufeh  with  hanging  ends,  the  bust  is  bare;  in  his 
right  hand  he  holds  the  hooked  staff  and  the  sacred  whip 
emblems  of  royalty  ;  the  left  hand  is  indolently  stretched 
over  the  thigh.  The  body  is  young,  the  muscling  supple 
and  thick,  and  although  he  sinks  down  a  httle,  he  has 
not  the  squat  attitude  we  know  so  well.  The  face  and 
neck  are  somewhat  slender,  and  contain  the  characteristics 
that,  exaggerated  later,  lent  themselves  almost  naturally 
to  caricature.  It  is,  in  fact,  the  effigy  of  the  young  king 
sculptured  at  Thebes  at  the  time  when  he  was  only 
Amenophis  IV,  but  when  he  demanded  that  he  should 
be  represented  as  he  was,  or  as  he  saw  himself,  without 
reference  to  the  conventional  type  of  the  Pharaoh.  In  the 
second  piece,  a  statue  of  which  only  the  head  and  shoulders 
remain,  he  is  some  years  older.  He  is  armed  for  war,  and 
his  neck,  too  slender,  has  bent  under  the  weight  of  the 
helmet,  as  if  thenceforth  incapable  of  supporting  it.  It  is 
the  profile  of  the  bas-reliefs  of  El-Amarna  with  the  rounded 
spine  and  the  particular  curve  that  projects  the  head 
forward ;  the  forehead,  nose  and  mouth  only  differ  from 
those  of  the  statuette  in  that  they  are  thinner.  A  plaster 
mask  in  the  Cairo  Museum  which  Petrie  considers  to 
have  been  moulded  on  the  corpse  immediately  after  the 
sovereign's  death,  but  which  is  undoubtedly  a  studio 
model,  testifies  to  a  condition  of  physiological  degeneracy 
that  did  not  before  exist.  It  presents  the  emaciated 
features  of  the  bas-reliefs  and  their  bony  texture,  it  is 
true,  but  without  their  extreme  exaggerations.  When  it 
was  question  of  a  statue,  the  sculptor  forbade  himself  the 
liberties  that  his  colleagues,  commissioned  to  decorate  the 
tombs,  allowed  themselves  with  the  master:  he  repre- 
sented him  just  as  he  was  at  the  moment,  and  the 
physiognomy  was  sufficiently  original  for  him  to  be  certain 

131 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


of  always  deriving  from  it  a  work  that  would  force  the 
attention  of  the  spectators. 

And  now  let  us  compare  each  of  these  pieces  with  our 
Canopic  heads.  The  profile  of  Khouniatonou  helmeted 
is  not  as  strong  as  theirs,  due  perhaps  to  the  contusions 
undergone  by  the  surface  of  the  stone  during  a  long 
sojourn  in  a  damp  soil  where  saltpetre  was  abundant,  but 
each  of  the  elements  may  be  superposed  and  adjusted, 
forehead,  nose,  eyes,  mouth,  chin,  in  an  absolutely  satis- 
fying manner:  it  merely  seems  that  the  artist  of  the 
Canopic  heads  saw  his  model  in  better  health  than  that  of 
the  statue.  The  resemblance,  although  less  complete, 
with  the  statuette  of  yellow  soapstone  is  still  apparent. 
No  unprejudiced  observer  with  the  series  in  front  of  him 
can  come  to  any  other  conclusion  than  that  we  have  in 
it  portraits  of  one  and  the  same  man.  Leaving  out  the 
slight  differences  due  to  the  chisel,  there  is  no  more 
deviation  between  the  group  of  statues  and  the  best  of 
our  heads  than  there  is  between  that  and  the  three  found 
with  it.  There  is  divergence  in  one  point  only:  in  the 
two  statues  the  head  bends  and  leans  forward  more  or 
less ;  in  the  Canopic  jars  it  is  erect  without  weakness.  A 
moment's  reflection  will  show  that  it  could  not  be  other- 
wise. However  greatly  we  are  moved  by  the  beauty  of 
the  work,  we  must  not  forget  that  our  four  heads  belong, 
not  to  art  pure  and  simple,  but  to  industrial  art,  and  that 
their  purpose  imposed  special  rules  on  the  master  who 
chiselled  them.  They  were  prosaic  lids  for  the  receptacles 
in  which  the  entrails  of  the  Pharaoh  were  placed,  and  it 
was  necessary  that  the  median  axis  of  the  vase  properly 
so-called  should  coincide  exactly  with  that  of  the  lid. 
There  was  a  question  of  equilibrium  to  be  managed  between 
the  two  constituent  elements  of  the  Canopic  jar;  the 

132 


To  face  p.  132. 


Four  Canopic  Heads 


sculptor  must  straighten  the  neck  of  his  model,  and  con- 
sequently correct  the  impression  of  lassitude  given  by  the 
statues,  by  an  appearance  of  vigour.  If  we  examine  the 
portraits  of  Khouniatonou  and  his  successors  in  company 
of  a  physician,  certain  anatomical  details  that  at  the  first 
glance  we  did  not  trouble  about — the  depression  of  the 
temples,  the  obliquity  of  the  eyes,  the  contraction  of  the 
sides  of  the  nostrils,  the  pinching  of  the  mouth,  the  attenua- 
tion of  the  neck — assume  an  etiological  value  that  the 
archaeologist  was  far  from  suspecting.  Dr.  Bay,  studying 
the  faces  of  Khouniatonou,  Touatankhamanou,  and  Harm- 
habi  with  me,  diagnosed  symptoms  of  consumption  more 
or  less  advanced.  If  Khouniatonou  died  of  the  disease 
when  thirty  years  old,  we  need  not  be  greatly  surprised. 

I  do  not  insist  upon  this  kind  of  research,  in  which 
I  am  not  competent,  and  I  leave  it  to  the  reader  to  decide 
if  I  have  or  have  not  proved  the  identity  of  the  person 
represented  by  our  four  heads  to  be  that  of  Khouniatonou, 
the  heresiarch.  One  of  them  at  least  is  a  masterpiece,  and 
the  others  possess  qualities  that  assure  them  a  high  place 
in  the  estimation  of  connoisseurs,  but  to  which  of  the 
great  Egyptian  schools  ought  we  to  attribute  them  ?  We 
may  hesitate  between  two :  the  Theban,  to  which  most  of 
the  artists  who  filled  the  royal  laboratories  then  belonged, 
and  the  Hermopolitan,  in  the  province  of  which  was 
El-Amarna,  the  favourite  residence  of  the  sovereign.  It 
was  certainly  the  latter  school  that  worked  at  the 
hypogeums  and  sculptured  the  pictures.  We  find  in  them 
its  defects :  harsh,  rough  composition,  a  tendency  to  carica- 
ture the  human  form  and  to  multiply  comic  episodes ;  but 
also  its  good  qualities :  suppleness,  movement,  life,  free- 
dom of  execution.  The  few  figures  in  alto-rjplievo  that 
have  escaped  destruction,  those,  for  instance,  that  accom- 

133 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


pany  two  of  the  large  front  stelee,  are  of  the  same  style 
as  the  bas-reliefs,  but  we  do  not  find  in  them  any  of  the 
characteristics  that  we  have  noted  as  proper  to  the 
monuments  of  the  Louvre  or  to  our  Canopic  jars.  Just 
as  the  others  show  an  unfinished,  worn  aspect,  these  are 
carefully  finished  in  the  least  details :  it  is  the  perfect 
chiselling  and  high  polish  of  the  Theban  masters  and  their 
strong,  dignified  way  of  posing  the  figure  and  expressing 
the  physiognomy  of  the  model.  Whoever  has  seen  the 
statues  of  Thoutmosis  III,  Amenothes  II,  the  so-called 
Taia,  and  Touatankhamanou  in  the  Cairo  Museum  will 
not  doubt  for  a  moment  that  our  four  heads  are  from  the 
hands  of  persons  belonging  to  the  same  school :  they 
belong  to  the  Theban  school,  and  more  particularly,  I 
think,  to  that  portion  of  the  Theban  school  which,  a 
few  years  later,  decorated  the  temple  of  Gournah,  the 
Memnonium  of  Abydos,  and  the  hypogeum  of  Setoui  I. 


134 


KING  KHOUNIATONOU. 
Fragment  of  a  stone  statue.    The  Louvre. 


To  face  p  134. 


XIV 


A  HEAD  OF  THE  PHARAOH  HARMHABI 

(Boulaq  Museum) 

The  whole  is  composed  of  about  ten  pieces,  collected 
in  1860  in  one  of  the  halls  of  the  temple  of  Karnak,  and 
put  together  with  plaster,  for  good  or  ill,  by  one  of  the 
workmen  belonging  to  the  Museum.  The  cementing 
was  not  always  done  with  rigorous  accuracy,  and  one  of 
the  largest  fragments,  that  which  forms  the  centre  of  the 
head-dress,  is  slightly  out  of  the  perpendicular.  Last  year 
I  tried  to  remedy  the  awkwardness  of  the  restorer,  but 
without  success ;  if  an  attempt  was  made  to  separate  the 
badly  joined  pieces,  there  would  be  a  risk  of  reducing 
them  to  powder.  But  the  irregularities  in  the  joining 
are  sufficiently  slight  not  to  injure  the  general  aspect. 
In  its  present  condition  it  is  just  the  mutilated  bust  of  a 
king  with  the  urseus  and  the  double  crown  on  the  brow ; 
the  broken  object  that  leans  against  the  left  side  is  the  end 
of  a  staff  of  office,  terminated  with  a  ram  s  head,  the 
emblem  of  Khnoum  or  Theban  Amon.  If  we  would 
form  some  idea  of  what  the  body  was  like,  it  is  sufficient 
to  look  at  any  of  the  statues  with  the  insignia  that  adorn 
the  museums,  that  of  Ramses  II  at  Boulaq^  or  of  Setoui  I 

*  Mariette,  "Notice  des  principaux  monuments  du  Musee  de 
Boulaq,"  6th  edition,  1876,  p.  300,  No.  100  C. 

135 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


in  the  Louvre.  The  king  was  standing,  with  his  back 
against  a  sort  of  pillar  covered  with  inscriptions,  and 
holding  the  staff  in  his  hand :  as  he  looked  in  certain 
religious  ceremonies  when  he  escorted  the  ark  of  Amon-Ra 
through  the  halls  and  court-yards  of  the  temple.  What 
remain  of  the  hieroglyphic  legends  do  not  give  any  name. 
Mariette  was  tempted  to  recognize  it  as  Menephtah,  son 
of  Ramses  II, f  but  he  has  not  anywhere  explained 
the  motives  that  led  him  to  that  identification.  The 
lugubrious  tone  of  the  black  granite  spoils  the  first 
impression,  but  an  examination,  even  if  only  a  superficial 
one,  soon  reveals  the  subtlety  of  the  work.  The  head, 
under  the  enormous  pschent,  is  full  of  charm  and  delicacy. 
The  face  is  young,  with  an  expression  of  gentle  melancholy 
rare  among  the  Pharaohs  of  the  great  Theban  period. 
The  nose  is  straight,  thin,  and  well  attached  to  the  fore- 
head ;  the  long  eye  turns  up  at  the  temples.  The  wide,  full 
hps,  somewhat  tightened  at  the  corners  as  if  for  smiling, 
are  boldly  cut  with  sharply  defined  edges.  The  chin  is 
scarcely  rendered  heavy  by  the  weight  of  the  artificial 
beard.  Every  detail  is  treated  with  as  much  skill  as  if 
the  sculptor  had  been  manipulating  a  soft  stone  like 
limestone,  and  not  one  of  the  materials  that  offer  all  the 
obstacles  possible  to  the  chisel.  The  sureness  of  the  execu- 
tion is  carried  so  far  that  the  spectator  forgets  the  difficulty 
of  the  work  in  order  to  think  solely  of  its  intrinsic  value. 
It  is  a  pity  that  Egyptian  artists  did  not  sign  their  works : 
the  name  of  the  master  to  whom  we  owe  this  deserves  to 
have  come  down  to  us. 

E.  de  Rouge,  "Notice  sommaire  des  monuments  egyptiens," 
3rd  edition,  1864,  p.  34,  A  21.  The  British  Museum  possesses  a 
replica  of  this  statue. 

I  Mariette,  "  Notice,"  1st  edition,  1864,  p.  184,  No.  17  ;  and 
6th  edition,  1876,  p.  92,  No.  22. 

136 


HEAD   OF   THE   PHARAOH  HARMHABI. 
Black  granite. 

To  face  p.  186. 


The  Pharaoh  Harmhabi 


It  remains  to  see  who  was  the  king  whose  portrait 
he  has  transmitted  to  us.    When  a  Pharaoh  ascended  the 
throne,  the  sculptors  of  the  city  where  he  then  was, 
Memphis,  Thebes,  Tanis,  or  another,  hastened  to  make  a 
certain  number  of  copies  of  his  portrait,  full  face  or  in  pro- 
file;  these  were  immediately  sent  into  the  provinces,  in 
order  that  his  face  might  be  everywhere  substituted  for  that 
of  the  former  sovereign  on  the  buildings  in  course  of  erec- 
tion.   Thus  in  the  Boulaq  Museum  we  have  several  series 
of  royal  heads,  some  discovered  at  Tanis,"^  some  in  the 
Fayoum,t  others  at  Memphis,;]:  which  show  what  was  the 
procedure  in  such  a  case.    The  type,  once  carefully  fixed, 
did  not  change  during  the  whole  of  the  reign.    Ramses  II, 
who  was  nearly  a  hundred  years  old  when  he  died,  after 
reigning  for  sixty-seven  years,  kept  the  features  of  a  young 
man  even  to  his  latest  monuments.    The  rule  contains 
numerous  exceptions,   especially  when  it  is  a  question 
of  statues  commissioned  in  one  of  the  capitals  of  the 
country,  and  executed  by  artists  who  could  see  their  sub- 
ject  at  close  quarters   and   register  the   changes  time 
produced  in  his  face.    Of  the  two  Chephren  exhibited  at 
Boulaq,  one  is  young  and  smiHng,§  the  other  old  and 
saddened  by  age.||    But  if  there  are  examples  of  sovereigns 
who,  ascending  the  throne  early,  were  sometimes  repre- 
sented as  they  were  at  different  periods  of  their  life,  I 
know  of  none  who  were  rejuvenated  by  the  sculptors  when 

*  Mariette,    Notice,"  6th  edition,  p.  221,  Nos.  638-48;  Maspero, 
Guide  du  Visiteur  au  Mus6e  de  Boulaq,"  1883,  pp.  100-3. 
+  Mariette,  "Notice,"  6th  edition,  p.  221,  Nos.  649-51;  Maspero, 
"Guide,"  p.  101. 

I  Mariette,  "  Notice,"  6th  edition,  p.  221,  Nos.  623-37. 

§  Mariette,  "  Notice,"  6th  edition,  pp.  212-13,  No.  578 ;  Maspero, 
"Guide,"  p.  75,  No.  396. 

II  Mariette,  "  Notice,"  6th  edition,  p.  239,  No.  792. 

137 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


they  reached  the  throne  at  a  late  age.  The  head  of  the 
statue  with  which  we  are  here  concerned  is  that  of  a 
young  man,  almost  a  youth,  and  that  is  sufficient  for  me 
to  rule  out  Menephtah.  Menephtah  was  fifty  at  least 
when  he  succeeded  his  father,^  and  his  portrait,  as  it  is  to 
be  seen  at  Karnak,  does  not  in  any  way  resemble  the 
personage  whose  image  is  preserved  in  the  Boulaq  statue. 
The  other  princes  of  the  XlXth  and  XXth  Dynasties, 
Setoui  II,  Siphtah  Menephtah,  Amenmeses,  Setinakht,  of 
whom  we  have  only  a  few  poor  portraits,  have  no  more 
claim  to  be  commended  than  their  great  predecessors 
Setoui  I  or  Ramses  II :  the  disturbed  times  in  which  they 
lived  scarcely  admitted  of  works  of  careful  composition. 
Like  Menephtah,  Ramses  I  was  too  old  at  his  accession, 
and  besides,  we  have  his  portrait  at  Gournah.  And, 
moreover,  the  style  of  the  piece  recalls  at  first  sight  that 
of  the  Turin  statues  belonging  to  the  XVIIIth  Dynasty, 
and  then  we  must  eliminate  a  priori  a  certain  number  of 
statues  of  which  we  possess  the  exact  description.  Neither 
Ahmosis  I,  nor  the  Thouthmosis,  nor  the  Amenhotpou  have 
anything  in  common  with  our  personage ;  and  for  even 
a  stronger  reason  we  cannot  recognize  in  him  the  character- 
istic physiognomy  of  Khounaton  and  Ai.  Proceeding 
from  one  exclusion  to  another,  we  come  to  restrict  the 
choice  to  three  princes,  Touatankhamonou,  Sanakht,  and 
Harmhabi.  Sanakht  had  only  an  ephemeral  reign ;  Toua- 
tankhamonou has  only  left  us  insignificant  monuments; 
Harmhabi,  on  the  contrary,  appears  to  have  been  one  of 
the  most  important  sovereigns  of  his  time.    A  young  man 

*  Maspero,  "Letter  to  M.  Gustave  d'Eichtal  on  the  circumstances 
of  the  history  of  Egypt  which  favoured  the  exodus  of  the  Hebrew 
nation,"  in  the  Cornptes  Rendus  de  VAcadeinie  des  Inscriptions  et  Belles- 
Lettres,  1873,  pp.  37-8. 

138 


The  Pharaoh  Harmhabi 


at  the  accession,  he  restored  the  temples  of  Amon  despoiled 
by  his  heretic  predecessors,  and  re-established  the  Egyptian 
power  that  had  been  weakened  for  a  moment  in  Syria 
and  Ethiopia.  Last  year  and  this  year  I  cleared  away 
the  rubbish  from  two  of  the  pylons  he  had  built  and 
decorated  at  Karnak  ;  his  portrait  was  sculptured  on  them 
numerous  times,  and  the  outlines  are  sufficiently  well 
preserved  for  us  to  see  in  the  king  of  the  bas-reliefs  the 
original  of  the  Boulaq  bust.  I  attribute  the  statue  of 
which  Mariette  found  the  remains  to  Harmhabi,  the 
Armais  of  the  Greeks. 

In  conclusion,  I  may  observe  that  the  fragments,  when 
carefully  examined,  show  no  trace  of  having  been  broken 
by  a  hammer ;  the  statue  was  not  destroyed  by  the  hand 
of  man,  the  case  with  a  certain  number  of  the  monu- 
ments at  Karnak.  The  great  earthquake  of  the  year 
27  B.C.,  which  put  the  temple  of  Amon  almost  into  the 
condition  in  which  we  see  it,  brought  down  the  ceilings 
of  the  halls;  all  the  objects  underneath  were  injured  by 
the  blocks  or  architraves  then  violently  throvm  to  the 
ground  and  crushed  under  the  weight  of  the  ruins.  Our 
Harmhabi  did  not  escape  the  common  lot :  it  needed 
Mariette's  great  patience  to  restore  the  little  we  possess 
of  him. 


139 


XV 


THE  COLOSSUS  OF  RAMSES  II  AT  BEDRECHEIN* 

Ramses  II,  Sesostris,  having  restored  the  portions  of  the 
great  temple  of  Phtah  at  Memphis,  which  bordered  the 
sacred  lake  on  the  west  and  south,  had  colossi  erected  in 
front  of  the  doors,  destined  to  perpetuate  his  memory  and 
his  features  for  all  "  who  should  come  after  him  on  the 
earth,  priests,  magicians,  scribes,"  and  who  should  recite 
a  prayer  to  the  gods  on  his  behalf.  The  sacristans 
appointed  as  guides  to  the  profane,  and  the  dragomans 
who  act  as  showmen  of  the  wonders  of  Egypt,  never  fail 
to  draw  the  tourist's  attention  to  these  statues ;  it  gives 
them  an  opportunity  to  relate  some  amusing  story  like 
those  collected  by  Herodotus  and  transmitted  to  us  by 
him  as  authentic  history.  One  day  Darius  I  wished  to 
consecrate  his  image  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  the  high 
priest  opposed  his  purpose :  "  Sesostris,"  he  said,  "  has 
conquered  all  the  nations  that  obey  you,  and  the  Scythians 
to  boot,  on  whom  you  never  succeeded  in  inflicting  much 
harm.  There  is  then  no  reason  why  your  monument 
should  be  placed  by  the  side  of  that  of  a  Pharaoh  whom  you 
have  neither  surpassed  nor  equalled!"  When  Memphis  fell 
and  became  Christian,  the  fame  of  the  colossi  died  away. 
When  it  perished  and  its  temple  of  Phtah  was  dismantled 

Published  in  La  Nature^  1892,  vol.  lix.,  pp.  161-3. 
140 


THE    HALF-BURIED  COLOSSUS  OF  RAMSES  II. 


To  face  p.  140. 


The  Colossus  of  Ramses  II 


stone  by  stone  to  serve  for  the  building  of  Cairo,  they 
were  thrown  down,  and  for  the  most  part  cut  up  into 
grindstones,  whence  they  passed  into  the  Hme-kiln.  One 
of  them,  however,  thrown  from  its  pedestal  and  lying  face 
downwards  on  the  ground,  was  covered  with  rubbish,  and 
preserved  from  destruction  by  that  happy  chance.  Brought 
to  light  by  Caviglia  at  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  it  had  the  good  luck  to  please  travellers,  and  owed 
it  to  them  to  have  escaped  the  mania  for  destruction 
that  possesses  the  fellahs. 

All  Europeans  in  turn  who  have  visited  Egypt  have 
admired  it.  It  lies  along  the  side  of  the  path  under  the 
palm-trees  of  Bedrechein  at  the  bottom  of  a  muddy  ditch. 
At  the  period  of  the  inundation,  water  fills  it  and  covers 
the  statue  for  some  weeks ;  then  it  gradually  reappears, 
the  shoulder  and  the  leg  first,  then  the  bust  and  face,  until 
it  is  all  high  and  dry  again  in  its  hole.  Its  Pharaoh  was 
standing,  walking,  the  arms  close  against  the  sides.  The 
name  of  Ramses  II  is  to  be  read  on  the  cartouche 
engraved  on  the  buckle  of  the  waistband  that  fastened  his 
petticoat.  Nitre  has  destroyed  one  side  of  the  face  and 
body,  but  what  remains  suffices  to  show  the  excellence  of 
the  work.  The  profile  is  that  of  the  young  Ramses,  with 
low  forehead,  large  aquiline  nose,  rather  a  large  mouth,  and 
a  haughty  expression.  The  base  is  at  some  distance  off, 
and  farther  away  still,  to  the  south,  a  smaller  colossus  in 
wood,  debris  of  walls,  and  fragments  of  statues  point 
out  the  position  of  ancient  chambers.  The  palm  forest 
which  flourishes  on  the  site  harasses  excavation  and 
prevents  us  from  reconstituting  the  plan.  The  building 
or  group  of  buildings  that  our  colossus  adorned  went  along 
the  south  bank  of  the  sacred  reservoir  on  which  the 
mysteries  of  Phtah  and  the  Memphian  gods  were  cele- 

141 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

brated  on  the  canonical  days.  In  spite  of  the  long  period 
of  time,  alluvial  matter  has  not  succeeded  in  entirely 
filling  the  lake.  The  place  is  marked  by  a  noticeable  de- 
pression, and  the  earth  which  fills  it,  instead  of  being  planted 
with  date-trees,  is  sown  with  corn ;  it  is  like  a  square  basin 
the  edges  of  which  are  drawn  downwards  from  the 
surrounding  ground.  The  rise  of  the  river  partly  restores 
the  original  aspect  of  the  spot,  but  the  setting  of  porticoes 
and  pylons  which  framed  it  has  vanished ;  it  is  replaced 
by  clumps  of  big  trees,  under  which  is  situated  the  village 
of  Tell-el-Khanzir. 

It  seems  that  Mohammed- Ali  formerly  gave  Ramses  II 
to  England ;  the  fact  is  not  exactly  proven,  and  to  admit 
it  definitely  a  more  serious  authority  than  that  of  one 
or  several  of  the  "Travellers'  Guides  to  Egypt"  would 
be  required.  The  English  have  not  availed  themselves 
of  the  doubtful  tradition  to  remove  the  colossus :  they 
were  satisfied  to  set  it  up  again.  They  did  not  succeed 
at  the  first  attempt,  and  two  trials  made  by  Messrs. 
Garwood  and  Anderson  failed  ignominiously  enough. 
General  Stephenson,  who  long  commanded  the  army,  was 
more  successful.  He  first  had  the  ambitious  project  of 
setting  the  statue  on  its  feet  again,  but  as  the  subscription 
opened  for  that  purpose  did  not  produce  sufficient  money, 
he  contented  himself  with  raising  it  up  above  the  level 
of  the  inundation.  The  operations,  conducted  by  Major 
Arthur  Bagnold,  of  the  Engineers,  were  begun  on  January 
20,  1887."^    Having  drawn  off  the  water,  he  applied  eight 

*  Major  Arthur  Bagnold  published  an  account  of  them,  with  three 
drawings  by  Wallis  and  a  few  sketches,  *'  An  account  of  the  manner 
in  which  two  Colossal  Statues  of  Rameses  II  at  Memphis  were  raised," 
in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Biblical  Archceology ^  vol.  x., 
p.  452  et  seq. 

142 


The  Colossus  of  Ramses  II 


lifting  jacks  of  differing  force  along  the  body :  the  effort 
was  directed  alternately  to  the  head  and  the  feet :  as 
soon  as  the  whole  mass  was  raised  a  little  more  than  a 
foot  and  a  half,  huge  beams  were  slipped  underneath, 
and  the  hollow  was  filled  up  with  broken  potsherds 
collected  in  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  city,  reduced  to  tiny 
pieces  and  beaten  so  as  to  form  a  compact  bed.  The 
work  was  finished  on  April  16th.  The  colossus  now  lies  on 
its  back,  the  face  to  the  sky.  A  pent-house  shelters  the 
head  ;  a  thick  brick  wall  surrounds  it  and  protects  it  from 
the  gaze  of  the  inquisitive  crowd.  Its  guardian  dwells 
beside  it  in  a  small  two-roomed  house  where  Major 
Bagnold  installed  him,  and  he  only  shows  it  to  visitors  on 
payment  of  two  Egyptian  piastres :  it  costs  about  sixpence 
to  see  it  at  the  bottom  of  the  new  funnel  in  which  it 
is  plunged.  The  "  Service  des  Antiquites "  employs  a 
portion  of  the  tax  in  keeping  it  in  good  condition.  Another 
Ramses  in  granite  and  a  stele  of  Apries  found  in  the 
neighbourhood  were  afterwards  placed  there,  and  complete 
the  Httle  open  air  museum. 

The  Arabs  call  the  colossus  Abotil-Hol,  the  father 
of  the  Terror,  like  the  great  Sphinx.  I  do  not  know 
what  they  think  now  that  it  is  under  lock  and  key 
in  its  enclosure,  but  they  were  really  frightened  of  it 
when  it  was,  so  to  speak,  at  large.  The  ancient  Egyp- 
tians believed  that  statues,  human  and  divine,  were  ani- 
mated by  a  spirit,  a  double,  detached  from  the  soul  of 
the  person  they  represented.  The  double  ate,  drank, 
even  spoke  at  need,  and  pronounced  oracles;  it  has  survived 
the  religion  and  civilization  of  the  ancient  people,  but  the 
changes  that  have  taken  place  around  it  seem  to  have 
soured  its  character.  It  plays  evil  tricks  on  those  who 
appproach  its  hiding-place,  injures  them,  at  need  even  kills 

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them :  Arab  writers  have  a  thousand  tales  of  persons  who 
suffered  because  they  imprudently  attacked  a  monument 
and  the  spirit  that  guards  it,  The  means  of  rendering  the 
Afrite  powerless  is  to  destroy,  if  not  the  whole  statue,  at 
least  its  face:  that  is  why  so  many  Pharaohs  have  their 
noses  broken  or  faces  damaged.  The  spirit  of  Ramses  II 
walked  in  the  palm  forest  at  night,  and  it  was  therefore 
imprudent  to  venture  in  the  vicinity  at  twilight.  Every 
time  that  I  was  obliged  to  go  that  way  at  sunset,  my 
donkey-boy  mumbled  prayers  and  urged  on  his  beast. 
One  evening  when  I  asked  him  if  he  was  afraid  of  some 
Afrite,  he  entreated  me  to  keep  silence,  assuring  me  that 
it  was  ill  to  speak  of  such  things,  and  that  if  I  persisted 
some  accident  would  happen  to  me.  In  fact,  my  donkey 
stumbled  in  the  middle  of  the  forest  and  threw  me  against 
the  trunk  of  a  palm-tree :  if  the  donkey-boy  had  not  caught 
me  and  averted  the  blow,  I  should  have  smashed  my  head. 
From  that  time,  whenever  there  was  talk  of  the  danger 
in  speaking  disrespectfully  of  the  spirit  that  lives  in  the 
statue,  what  had  happened  to  me  was  always  quoted. 
The  whole  of  Egypt  is  full  of  analogous  superstitions,  the 
greater  number  of  which  are  derived  from  the  ancient 
beliefs,  and  have  been  transmitted  from  generation  to 
generation  from  the  time  of  the  Pharaohs,  the  builders 
of  the  Pyramid  s."^ 

*  I  have  related  many  examples  of  this  belief  in  spirits  inhabiting 
the  ancient  monuments  in  "Egypt :  Ancient  Sites  and  Modern  Scenes," 
1910,  chap.  XV.,  p.  155.  I  have  collected  many  more,  and  hope  one 
day  to  have  an  opportunity  of  publishing  them. 


144 


XVI 


EGYPTIAN  JEWELLERY  IN  THE  LOUVRE* 


So  much  has  appeared  in  the  newspapers  about  the 
treasure  unearthed  at  Dahchour  last  year  by  M.  de 
Morgan,  that  every  one  in  Europe  knows  the  number, 
form,  and  richness  of  the  objects  it  comprises ;  but  among 
those  who  have  described  and  justly  praised  them,  how  many 
— I  do  not  say  Englishmen  or  Germans,  but  Frenchmen 
alone — know  that  the  Louvre  possesses  a  collection  of 
the  finest  Egyptian  jewellery  ?  Mariette  was  fortunate 
enough  twice  in  his  life  to  find  a  number  of  magnificent 
ornaments  of  great  artistic  value  on  the  royal  mummies, 
at  the  Serapeum  in  the  tomb  of  the  Apis  buried  in 
the  reign  of  Ramses  II  by  the  care  of  one  of  the 
sons  of  the  conqueror,  Khamoisit,  high-priest  of  Phtah, 
and  regent  of  the  kingdom  for  his  father,  and  at  Thebes 
in  the  coffin  of  a  queen  of  the  XVIIIth  Dynasty, 
Ahhotpou  I,  who  in  her  lifetime  was  the  daughter, 
sister,  wife,  and  mother  of  Pharaohs.  Mariette,  artist 
as  he  was,  very  skilfully  brought  out  the  interest  of  his 
discovery,  and  the  admirable  idea  it  gave  of  the  gold- 
smiths of  the  seventeenth  and  fourteenth  centuries  b.c, 
but  he  went  no  further.  He  had  brought  to  light 
so  many  monuments  of  importance  for  the   study  of 


*  Published  in  La  Nature,  1894,  vol.  Ixiii.,  pp.  230-4. 

145  K 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

political  history  and  of  civilization,  that  he  never  had 
time  to  dwell  much  on  the  secondary  result  of  his  works. 
The  jewellery  of  Ahhotpou  is  preserved  in  the  Boulaq 
Museum,  where  thousands  of  tourists  admire  it  every 
winter ;  that  of  the  Serapeum  is  placed  in  the  Louvre, 
and  usually  obtains  only  an  absent-minded  glance  from 
the  few  visitors  who  traverse  the  solitudes  of  the  Charles 
X  Museum. 

It  fills  several  compartments  of  a  glass  case  that 
stands  in  the  centre  of  the  historic  hall.  At  first  we 
note  a  large  gold  mask,  unfortunately  damaged,  and 
grouped  near  it  gold  chains  with  five  and  eight  strands 
of  extraordinary  suppleness  and  perfection ;  amulets  of 
various  shapes  in  felspar,  red  and  green  jasper,  and 
cornelian ;  scarabs,  a  buckle,  an  olive,  a  little  column, 
in  the  name  of  Khamoisit.  A  little  farther  on  a  second 
series  from  the  same  source  includes  pieces,  if  not  in 
themselves  more  finished,  more  curious  and  more  attractive 
to  a  modern  eye ;  the  Lord  Psarou,  who  was  present 
with  the  prince  at  the  funeral  of  an  Apis,  did  honour 
to  the  mummy  of  the  sacred  bull.  I  imagine  that  the 
greater  number  of  our  contemporaries  have  but  vague 
notions  regarding  the  way  in  which  the  Egyptians  wore 
jewels.  Men  or  women,  their  costume  at  first  was 
summary  enough  :  the  men  protected  their  loins  with  a 
cloth  which  scarcely  reached  the  knee  and  left  the  bust 
entirely  bare ;  the  women  crept  inside  a  clinging  smock 
which  reached  the  ankle,  went  up  to  the  pit  of  the 
stomach,  disclosed  the  breast,  and  was  kept  in  place  by 
two  straps  over  the  shoulders.  Jewellery  served  partly 
to  hide  what  the  stuff  left  uncovered,  at  least  with  the 
women.  A  necklace  of  several  rows  encircled  the  neck 
and  came  down  to  the  rise  of  the  breasts ;  large  rings 

146 


To  face  p.  14C. 


Egyptian  Jewellery 

were  round  the  wrists,  the  upper  part  of  the  arm,  and 
the  lower  part  of  the  leg.  The  hair,  or  rather  the  wig, 
clothed  the  back  and  half  the  shoulder;  a  square  plaque 
suspended  by  a  chain  of  beads  or  a  leather  strap 
hung  down  below  the  necklace  into  the  space  between 
the  two  breasts.  That  is  what  we  call  the  pectoral.  It 
often  looks  like  the  facade  of  a  temple,  surrounded  by  a 
torus,  and  surmounted  by  a  curved  cornice  ;  portraits  of 
gods  or  sacred  emblems  were  crowded  on  the  sur- 
face, and  inscriptions  scattered  everywhere  tell  us  the 
name  of  the  owner,  accompanied  generally  by  pious 
formulas. 

The  buckle  of  Psarou  must  have  served  to  fasten  the 
linen  waistband  which  confined  the  loin-cloth,  or  the 
band  which  went  round  the  head  and  kept  the  head- 
dress in  place.  His  pectoral  is  one  of  the  richest  that 
has  come  down  to  us.  It  is  fashioned  in  a  plaque  of 
green  basalt,  polished  and  sculptured  with  a  precision 
that  is  astonishing  when  we  remember  how  imperfect 
were  the  tools  at  the  disposal  of  the  Egyptians.  The 
central  scarab  is  in  very  high  relief  against  the  flat  back- 
ground, and  the  fidelity  of  the  modelling  is  marvellous  : 
the  smallest  details  of  the  head  and  corslet  are  rendered 
with  almost  scientific  truth.  The  two  women  who  seem 
to  worship  it  on  the  right  and  left  are  Isis  and  Nephthys, 
the  two  sisters  of  Osiris.  The  contours  of  their  bodies 
are  cut  in  the  gold  leaf  that  frames  the  scarab.  Another 
pectoral  of  which  I  give  a  reproduction  is  of  less  delicate 
workmanship,  but  the  technique  presents  interesting 
peculiarities.  It  has  openings  cut  in  it,  and  the  design 
of  the  parts  is  obtained  by  partitions  of  a  very  supple 
gold,  in  which  are  set  the  scarab  and  the  coloured  glass 
which  relieve  the  uprights  and  cornice  of  the  naos.  The 

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scarab  is  in  lapis  lazuli,  the  dress  of  the  goddesses  in 
brilliant  gold,  engine-turned  to  simulate  the  stripes  of  the 
stuff.  The  mystical  meaning  of  this  design  would  not 
escape  any  educated  Egyptian.  The  scarab  represents  the 
heart  and  life  of  man,  where  life  resides ;  it  is  the  amulet 
which  ensures  to  each  man,  living  or  dead,  the  owner- 
ship of  his  heart.  That  is  why  it  was  given  to  wealthy 
mummies,  if  not  to  all  mummies :  sometimes  it  was  stuck 
on  to  the  skin  of  the  corpse  with  bitumen  at  the  rise  of 
the  neck ;  sometimes  it  was  set  in  the  centre  of  a  pectoral, 
lost  in  the  thickness  of  the  swathings  over  the  chest.  As 
every  Egyptian,  when  he  left  this  world,  was  assimilated 
to  Osiris  and  became  Osiris  himself,  the  heart  and  the 
scarab  passed  as  the  heart  and  scarab  of  Osiris,  over 
which  Isis  and  Nephthys  watched,  as  they  had  watched 
over  Osiris ;  hence  the  figures  of  the  two  goddesses.  They 
warmed  the  heart  with  their  hands,  they  recited  the 
formulas  that  prevented  it  from  perishing,  they  kept  off 
evil  spirits  and  the  magicians  who  might  have  seized  it 
for  their  dark  purposes.  Religion  provided  the  artists 
with  a  subtle  motive  of  decoration ;  while  they  never 
went  far  beyond  the  primary  idea,  they  varied  its  detail 
and  expression  with  much  skill.  The  women  are  some- 
times standing,  sometimes  seated  or  kneeling ;  they  extend 
their  arms  in  front  of  them,  or  lift  them  to  their  fore- 
heads like  mourners,  or  let  them  hang  down  in  token  of 
grief;  the  scarab  rests  on  a  boat  or  a  lotus  flower  or  an 
altar,  instead  of  floating  in  air,  as  in  the  jewel  of  the 
Serapeum.  Comparative  study  of  all  the  scenes  would 
prove  once  again  the  Egyptians'  fertility  of  imagination 
and  their  skill  in  ringing  the  changes  on  the  most 
hackneyed  subjects. 

The  pectoral  in  the  centre  belonged  to  Ramses  II 

148 


PECTORAL  OF   EAMSES  II. 
The  Louvre. 


PECTORAL  IN  SHAPE   OF  A  HAWK  WITH    A  EAM's  HEAD. 
The  Louvre. 


To  face  p.  14H^ 


Egyptian  Jewellery 


himself,  or,  at  least,  was  executed  by  his  order,  and  as  a 
personal  gift  in  honour  of  the  Apis  that  was  buried : 
the  cartouche  name  Ousirmdri  is  placed  just  below  the 
frieze,  and  serves,  so  to  speak,  as  a  centre  for  the 
composition  that  fills  the  inside  of  the  frame.  There  is 
first  a  hawk  with  a  ram's  head,  with  spread  wings  which 
curve  in  order  to  frame  the  cartouche :  in  his  claws  he 
holds  the  seal,  the  emblem  of  eternity.  Lower,  a  large 
ura^us  and  a  vulture  spread  their  wings  and  enfold  both 
the  hawk  and  the  cartouche  in  mutual  protection.  Two 
Tats  symbolize  eternity,  and  fill  up  the  empty  spaces  in 
the  decoration  in  the  two  lower  corners.  The  hawk  with 
the  ram's  head  represents  the  soul  of  the  sun,  the  urasus 
and  the  vulture  are  the  patron  deities  of  the  South  and 
the  North :  together  they  defend  throughout  the  whole 
universe  the  king  whose  name  stands  between  their 
wings,  and,  by  the  intermediary  of  the  king,  the  dead 
man  whose  mummy  wears  the  jewel. 

Here  again  the  figures  are  designed  in  panels  of  gold 
encrusted  with  coloured  pastes  or  small  pieces  of  cut 
stones.  The  whole  is  rich,  elegant,  harmonious.  The 
three  principal  motives  grow  in  proportion  as  they 
descend  to  the  lower  part  of  the  picture,  according  to  an 
admirably  calculated  progression.  The  cartouche  with  its 
dull  gold  occupies  the  centre ;  below  it  the  hawk  forms  a 
first  band  of  iridescent  tones,  the  lines  of  which,  slightly 
curved  back,  correct  the  stiffness  of  the  long  sides  of  the 
cartouche ;  the  ur^eus  and  vulture,  one  pair  of  wings  seems 
to  serve  for  both,  envelop  the  hawk  and  the  cartouche 
in  a  semicircle  of  enamels,  the  tones  of  which  pass  from 
red  and  green  to  dark  blue,  with  a  boldness  and  a 
feeling  for  colour  that  does  honour  to  the  taste  of  the 
workman.    If  the  general  aspect  makes  an  impression  of 

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heaviness,  it  is  not  his  fault ;  the  form  of  the  jewel 
imposed  by  religious  tradition  is  so  rigid  in  itself  that 
no  combination  can  correct  the  effect  beyond  a  certain 
point.  The  rectangular  or  square  frame,  the  cornice  at 
the  top,  the  two  rams'  heads  which  fit  in  below  the 
cornice,  form  a  squat  and  massive  whole.  To  fill  the 
interior  suitably,  it  is  impossible  to  avoid  adding  to  the 
heaviness ;  in  manipulating  the  empty  spaces  a  slender 
and  narrow  appearance  is  procured,  as  in  one  at  least  of 
the  pectorals  of  Dahchour.  The  type  of  the  jewels  has 
its  origin  in  the  same  ideas  or  notions  whence  Egyptian 
architecture  and  sculpture  are  derived ;  it  is  monumental, 
and  seems  to  have  been  conceived  for  the  use  of  gigantic 
beings.  The  usual  dimensions  of  the  pectoral  are  too 
enormous  for  the  adornment  of  ordinary  men  and  women. 
They  only  come  into  their  own  on  the  breasts  of  the 
Theban  colossi :  the  immensity  of  the  stone  body  on 
which  their  image  is  sculptured  lightens  them  and  seems 
to  bring  out  their  exact  proportions. 

Sometimes  the  Egyptians  left  aside  the  square  form 
bequeathed  to  them  by  their  ancestors ;  the  sacred  bird 
left  his  cage  when  he  could.  Mariette  found  two  of  these 
simplified  pectorals  at  the  Serapeum,  both  of  which  repre- 
sent a  hawk :  the  first  has  its  ordinary  head  and  bends  its 
wings  back,  the  other  has  assumed  the  ram's  head  and 
keeps  its  wings  straight.  It  has  the  same  wealth  and  the 
same  elegance  of  line  as  in  the  other  objects  of  similar 
source,  but  the  motive,  rid  of  the  enamelled  frame  in  which 
it  was  stifled,  possesses  more  charm  and  is  better  suited 
to  humanity.  The  execution  is  wonderful,  and  the  ram's 
head,  in  particular,  surpasses  in  suppleness  of  workmanship 
all  that  is  so  far  known.  It  is  cut  in  a  little  ingot  of  pure 
gold,  but  it  is  not  the  material  that  is  of  most  value :  the 

150 


Egyptian  Jewellery 

old  chaser  knew  how  to  model  it  broadly,  and  has  given 
it  as  faithful  an  expression  as  if  he  had  cut  it  life-size  in 
a  block  of  granite  or  limestone.  It  is  no  longer,  as  every- 
where else,  industrial  art :  it  is  art  pure  and  simple.  Mariette, 
and  he  understood,  considered  that  he  had  never  come 
across  anything  approaching  this  among  the  Egyptian 
jewellery  he  had  seen.  The  gold  ring  also  belongs  to 
Ramses  II.  The  two  little  horses  who  prance  on  the  bezel 
were  celebrated  in  history.  They  were  called  Nourit  and 
Anaitis-contented,  and  were  harnessed  to  the  royal  chariot 
on  the  day  of  the  battle  of  Qodshou,  when  Ramses  II 
charged  in  person  the  Khitas  who  had  surprised  him.  The 
Pharaoh  remembered  the  service  they  rendered  him  on 
that  memorable  occasion.  The  chiselling,  although  not 
so  good  as  that  of  the  hawk  with  the  ram's  head,  is 
very  fine :  it  reproduces  very  boldly  the  particular 
attributes  of  Egyptian  horses,  their  exaggerated  mane, 
rather  thin  body,  slightly  swollen  extremities.  It  is  true 
that  the  rings,  as  a  rule,  are  not  adorned  with  subjects 
in  such  strong  relief :  the  bezel  is  composed  of  a  scarab 
or  a  metal  cartouche  turning  on  a  pivot,  sometimes  en- 
graved with  the  name  of  the  wearer  of  the  jewel,  but  more 
often  with  a  pious  formula  or  a  series  of  symbols  of  obscure 
meaning  by  way  of  inscription.  The  larger  number  of 
the  rings  we  see  in  the  museums  belonged  to  mummies, 
and  are  amulets  that  give  the  dead  man  some  sort  of  power 
over  the  inhabitants  of  the  other  world :  a  small  number 
only  were  used  by  their  owners  in  their  lifetime.  They 
are  seals,  affixed  to  deeds  like  our  stamps,  just  as  we 
affix  our  signature.  They  are  in  every  material :  gold, 
electron,  silver,  bronze,  copper,  enamel,  even  in  wood, 
according  to  the  wealth  of  the  individual ;  some  are 
veritable  masterpieces  of  engraving,  but  many  possess  no 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


more  artistic  value  than  the  common  copper  seals  bought 
ready  prepared  at  our  stationers'. 

The  largest  of  these  jewels  passed  through  so  many- 
hands  before  reaching  the  Louvre  that  they  have  sensibly 
suffered  :  the  panels  are  warped  or  even  broken,  the  enamels 
or  encrusted  plaques  are  here  and  there  worn  off.  The 
Dahchour  jewellery,  coming  direct  from  the  excavation, 
has  preserved  an  appearance  of  freshness  which  has  not 
a  little  contributed  to  increase  the  admiration  of  the  public : 
the  objects  seem  scarcely  to  have  left  the  hands  of  the 
goldsmith  who  fashioned  them,  and  the  surprise  we  experi- 
ence in  finding  them  still  so  fresh  after  more  than  four 
thousand  years  renders  us  indulgent  towards  the  im- 
perfections that  a  close  examination  soon  reveals.  Their 
extreme  antiquity,  and  quite  rightly,  counts  for  much  in 
the  appreciation  they  receive.  It  is  indeed  strange  to  con- 
firm that  from  the  twenty-fifth  century  B.C.  the  Egyptians 
had  carried  the  technique  of  precious  metals  and  the  art 
of  making  jewellery  to  a  very  high  degree  of  perfection. 
This  was,  of  course,  already  known,  for  it  is  not  infrequent 
to  find  rings,  fragments  of  necklaces,  isolated  pectorals,  some 
of  which  perhaps  go  back  to  the  Ancient  Empire,  while  others 
belong  to  the  Roman  period  or  betray  Byzantine  influence : 
our  museums  possess  them  by  tens,  and  there  is  scarcely 
a  private  collection  that  has  not  a  certain  number  of  them. 
But  these  isolated  objects  do  not  attract  the  attention  of 
the  public  ;  to  rouse  its  curiosity  it  is  necessary  that  some 
happy  chance  should  bring  to  light  a  considerable  treasure 
in  which  specimens  of  all  the  types  usually  collected  piece 
by  piece  are  placed  together.  Fortunately,  these  finds  are 
not  so  rare  as  might  be  imagined :  if  Gizeh  can  boast  of 
possessing  the  substance  of  Dahchour  and  the  queen 
Ahhotpou,  the  Berlin  Museum  has  the  admirable  orna- 

152 


Egyptian  Jewellery 

merits  that  Ferlini  obtained  from  one  of  the  Ethiopian 
pyramids  ;  the  Leyden  Museum  and  the  British  Museum 
shared  the  spoils  of  one  of  the  Antouf  kings  of  the  Xlth 
Dynasty  ;  and  the  Louvre  carefully  preserves  the  jewels 
of  the  Serapeum,  the  most  beautiful  of  all. 


153 


XVII 


THE  TREASURE  OF  ZAGAZIG  * 
I 

Once  more  chance  has  served  us  well.  Workmen  who 
were  making  a  railway  embankment  on  the  site  of 
ancient  Bubastis  discovered,  on  September  22,  1906,  a  real 
treasure  of  jewellery  and  Egyptian  goldsmiths'  work  in 
the  ruins  of  a  brick  house.  They  hoped  to  profit  by  the 
find  themselves,  but  one  of  our  watchmen  had  seen  them ; 
he  took  no  action,  however,  at  the  moment,  for  fear  of 
being  ill-treated :  the  next  day  he  reported  the  matter  to 
the  native  inspector,  Mohammed  EfFendi  Chaban,  who 
at  once  put  the  police  on  their  track  and  informed  his 
chief,  Mr.  Edgar,  inspector-general  of  the  antiquities  in 
the  provinces  of  the  delta.  Investigations  were  made 
in  likely  places,  while  the  police  searched  the  workmen's 
houses  and  recovered  some  of  the  pieces  that  had  been 
carried  off.  Several  that  escaped  them  fell  later  into  the 
hands  of  a  dealer  in  Cairo :  a  gold  strainer,  three  un- 
decorated  silver  phials,  a  large  chased  gold  ring  which 
strengthened  the  neck  of  a  silver  vase,  fragments  of  silver 
cups,  all,  except  the  gold  ring,  of  no  artistic  value.  The 

*  Extract  from  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne,  1908,  vol.  xxiii., 
pp.  401-12,  and  vol.  xxiv.,  pp.  29-38. 

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The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


two  most  valuable,  a  silver  vase  with  a  goat  in  gold  as 
handle  and  a  gold  goblet  in  the  form  of  a  half-opened  lotus, 
were  seized  at  the  house  of  the  fellahs,  Moursi  Hassanein 
and  Es-Sayed  Eid,  before  they  had  sold  them  to  a  local 
Greek  bakal  He  immediately  claimed  them  of  us  as  his 
personal  property  that,  failing  our  unfortunate  interference, 
he  would  have  acquired  for  ready  money.  As  no  reply 
was  vouchsafed  to  his  summons,  he  went  to  law  with  us. 
The  affair  dragged  on  for  some  weeks,  during  which  Mr. 
Edgar  had  the  railway  works  carefully  watched.  At  last, 
on  October  17th,  a  workman  with  a  blow  of  his  pick-axe 
laid  bare  several  fragments  of  silver  vases :  he  tried  to 
conceal  them,  but  our  ghafirs  prevented  him,  and  the 
search  proceeded  under  the  protection  of  the  police :  the 
objects  lay  in  a  heap,  gold  between  two  layers  of  silver  ; 
the  same  evening  they  were  in  safety.  The  work  was 
carried  out  so  quickly  that  nothing  was  lost,  and 
there  was  no  reason  for  any  one  to  contest  our  right  to 
the  windfall.  To  bring  this  story  to  an  end,  I  may  add 
that  on  November  4th  the  court  of  Zagazig  found  the 
two  fellahs  guilty  of  theft,  and  condemned  them  to  im- 
prisonment and  to  pay  half  the  costs.  But  the  bakal  still 
persisted  in  his  claim,  and  rumour  soon  spread  among  the 
natives  that  he  had  gained  his  suit  in  the  Court  of  Appeal : 
we  had  been  forced  to  deliver  up  to  him  the  objects  of 
the  litigation  under  penalty  of  a  considerable  fine  for  each 
day  of  delay.  The  dealers  never  hesitate  to  spread  lies 
of  this  sort  among  the  people :  they  thereby  enhance  their 
prestige  with  the  fellahs,  and  uphold  them  in  the  notion 
that  they  have  nothing  to  fear  from  the  "  Service  des 
Antiquites." 

The  treasure  safe,  we  had  to  take  note  of  the  condition 
in  which  it  reached  us.    At  the  first  glance,  two  very 

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different  series  were  perceived :  one,  which  comprised  the 
jewellery  and  the  gold  or  silver  vases  of  most  skilful 
workmanship,  went  back  to  the  XlXth  Dynasty;  the 
other  was  composed  exclusively  of  silver  plate,  the 
coarseness  of  which  betrayed  a  much  more  recent  period. 
Although  it  was  all  found  at  two  separate  times,  and 
in  two  places  somewhat  distant  from  each  other,  did  it 
originally  form  one  collection  ?  As  we  have  seen,  the 
whole  made  a  heap  among  the  debris  of  two  or  three  jars 
which  were  themselves  broken  in  the  course  of  centuries 
under  the  continuous  pressure  of  the  earth  ;  the  objects 
seemed  to  have  been  heaped  up  irregularly,  the  most 
valuable  in  the  middle,  the  others  forming  a  bed  above 
and  below.  We  had  even  still  adhering  to  a  large 
fragment  of  pottery  a  stem  partly  of  hardened  mud  and 
partly  of  metal,  in  which  we  recognized  on  a  precipitate 
of  less  ancient  earrings  and  bracelets,  the  remains  of 
several  Pharaonic  goblets.  How  can  it  be  explained  that 
relics  of  such  different  epochs  should  be  found  in  the  same 
place  ?  Many  of  them  are  intact,  but  others  have 
purposely  been  clipped  or  broken,  and  the  fragments  melted 
down  ;  they  are  also  mixed  with  plates  of  pliant  silver  and 
with  ingots  coming  from  goldsmiths'  workshops  like  those 
that  still  exist.  We  know  what  happens  not  only  in  Egypt 
but  in  European  countries  when  peasants  dig  up  treasure 
while  ploughing  their  land  :  they  take  it  to  a  jeweller,  who 
buys  it  of  them  by  weight,  throws  it  into  the  melting-pot, 
scarcely  ever  troubling  about  the  loss  thus  caused  to 
art  or  science,  and  transforms  it  into  modern  horrors.  It  is 
to  some  adventure  of  the  sort  that  we  owe  the  possession 
of  our  find.  A  fellah  who  lived,  I  imagine,  during  the 
time  of  the  Roman  domination,  found  in  the  ruins  near 
Zagazig,  if  not  at  Zagazig  itself,  silver  objects  which  he 

156 


SILVER   BRACELETS   AND  EARRING. 


To  face  p.  156. 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


sold  to  a  native  goldsmith  who  destroyed  some  of  them 
for  the  needs  of  his  craft,  and  kept  the  others  either 
to  give  to  a  collector  or  to  use  himself  in  the  same  way 
as  the  first  lot  when  that  should  be  exhausted.  Did  local 
sedition  or  the  sack  of  the  city  by  a  hostile  army  compel 
him  to  hide  his  property  in  two  different  places  ?  His 
goods,  once  hidden  under  the  earth,  were  not  again  drawn 
forth,  and  we  received  them  from  him,  almost  without  an 
intermediary,  sixteen  months  ago. 

II 

I  will  say  nothing  of  the  rubbish  of  his  own  fabrication. 
The  types  are  already  those  of  present-day  Egypt,  and  we 
could  easily  swear  that  most  of  them  were  manufactured 
for  sale  to  the  fellahs,  at  most,  twenty  years  ago  :  earrings 
in  the  form  of  pendants  or  oblong  rings,  to  the  lower  part  of 
which  eight  or  ten  metal  beads  are  soldered  in  bunches  ; 
rings  with  flat  bezels,  ornamented  or  left  plain  for  a  name 
to  be  engraved ;  bracelets  formed  of  a  simple  reed  of 
silver  foil,  thinned  at  each  end  and  covered  with  a  net- 
work of  lozenges  fixed  by  two  or  three  marks  hollowed 
out  by  the  chisel  and  lacking  elegance,  the  ends,  cut  off 
straight,  nearly  meet  when  the  piece  is  finished,  but  they 
do  not  join,  and  so  facilitate  the  putting  of  the  bracelet 
on  the  wrist.  It  is  the  honest  work  of  a  man  who  did 
not  spare  his  material,  but  only  knew  just  enough  of  his 
craft  to  please  easily  satisfied  customers ;  the  taste  of  the 
good  people  of  Bubastis  who  bought  these  things  was 
not  of  a  discriminating  sort,  or  they  may  have  found 
their  market  only  in  the  people's  quarters.  There  are  much 
better  things  of  the  kind  in  the  Cairo  Museum,  and  if 
the  new-found  treasure   had  only  yielded   such  objects, 

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it  would  have  been  at  once  despatched  to  the  salle  de  vente 
for  the  dehght  of  tourists. 

The  contrast  is  striking  as  soon  as  we  pass  to  what 
comes  down  from  the  Pharaonic  age.  Not  that  it  can  be 
placed  among  the  best  we  know  in  that  kind.  The  age 
of  Ramses  II  is  already  marked  by  a  less  sure  taste  than 
that  of  the  ages  that  preceded  it,  and  I  cannot  compare  it 
with  the  Dahchour  objects  nor  with  those  of  Queen 
Ahhotpou.  One  of  the  necklaces  is  the  common  breast- 
plate of  five  rows  of  little  tubes  in  stone  and  enamel, 
decorated  with  a  fringe  of  gold  egg-shaped  ornaments 
encrusted  with  coloured  stone.  Another  necklace,  also 
of  gold,  with  its  eight  rows  of  bottle- shaped  pendants 
hanging  to  little  chains  of  tiny  beads,  would  be  some- 
what out  of  keeping  with  the  others  if  that  was  its 
original  form,  but  the  parts  had  been  separated,  and  we 
remounted  them  ourselves  in  order  to  preserve  them  with 
less  risk  of  loss.  Five  lenticular  earrings  are  formed  of  two 
convex  gold  pellicles  closed  at  the  circumference  and  joined 
by  a  border  of  filigree,  stamped  in  the  centre  with  a  rosette, 
the  leaves  of  which  are  grouped  round  a  gold  or  enamel 
button ;  a  gold  tube  soldered  to  the  inside  and  grooved  in 
the  furrow  of  a  screw  passed  through  the  lobe,  and  was 
fastened  to  an  invisible  button  which,  pressed  against  the 
flesh,  kept  the  jewel  in  its  place.  There  was  also  a 
bracelet  in  minute  particles  of  metal  and  enamel,  like  those 
of  Ahhotpou  and  the  princesses  of  Dahchour,  but  only  the 
clasp  has  come  down  to  us,  a  sliding  clasp  of  a  most 
primitive  character,  with  no  value  except  for  the  gold. 
The  best  thing  in  the  series  was  undoubtedly  the  pair 
of  gold  and  lapis  lazuli  bracelets  on  which  may  be 
read  the  cartouche  name  Ousimares — Osymandyas — of 
Ramses  II. 

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ONE  OF  EAMSES  Il'S  BRACELETS  (OPEN). 


ONE  OF  RAMSES  Tl's  BRACELETS  (CLOSED). 


To  face  p.  15fi, 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 

They  form  two  circular  portions  of  nearly  equal  size, 
joined  by  two  hinges,  the  first  turning  on  a  fixed  axis,  the 
second  a  movable  bolt  taken  away  when  the  bracelet  was 
opened.  The  back  part  is  a  mere  plate  of  polished  gold 
about  1^  inches  broad,  on  which  eight  twists  and  eight  fillets 
are  laid  side  by  side.  The  twists  and  fillets  alternate,  and 
the  ends  are  bordered  with  a  thin  strip  parallel  to  the 
hinge.  On  it  are  placed  two  rows  of  minute  particles  of 
metal  soldered  together,  and  kept  in  place  by  two  flat 
double-twisted  little  chains.  The  front  portion  is  expanded 
to  the  middle,  where  it  is  just  over  2  inches  in  height. 
At  the  hinges  it  is  edged  by  a  row  of  egg-shaped  ornaments 
set  between  two  flat  chains,  and  along  the  curves  by  a 
twist  flanked  by  two  fillets.  A  second  frame,  included  in 
the  first,  is  of  a  more  complicated  design  :  a  double  7fiotif  of 
little  beads  and  chains  goes  round  the  curves,  but  on  the 
side  of  the  fixed  hinge  the  cartouche  name  of  Ramses  II 
is  to  be  seen,  and  on  the  side  of  the  movable  hinge  two 
bands  of  beads  and  filigree  lozenges  on  a  plain  background. 
In  the  space  thus  reserved  the  goldsmith  had  traced  the 
silhouette  of  a  group  of  ducks  lying  flat,  by  means  of  a  line 
of  beads  and  a  thin  thread.  The  two  bodies,  which  are 
packed  together  so  as  to  be  combined  in  one,  are  formed 
of  a  piece  of  lapis  lazuli,  cut  and  highly  polished.  The  ends 
of  the  bodies  are  imprisoned  in  a  gold  sheath  decorated  with 
a  covering  of  small  knobs  and  lozenges  ;  the  tails  are  joined 
together,  and  simulate  a  fan ;  they  are  of  lapis,  striped 
with  threads  of  gold  to  mark  the  separation  of  the  feathers. 
Another  gold  sheath,  of  similar  workmanship,  envelops  the 
chest ;  the  two  necks  escape  with  a  bold  movement,  and  the 
two  heads,  twisting  round,  lie  symmetrically  on  the  back 
of  the  creatures.  Between  them  and  the  frame  is  a  smooth 
ribbon  in  sharp  zigzags  on  a  seed-plot  of  granules.  The 

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whole  effect  is  rather  heavy,  and  it  would  have  been  better 
if  the  artist  had  shown  a  more  sober  taste;  but  having 
stated  so  much,  it  is  clearly  seen  that  his  work  was  conceived 
with  a  perfect  understanding  of  decoration  and  a  mastery 
of  all  the  secrets  of  the  art. 

All  the  methods  that  he  so  well  manipulated  may  be 
found  in  the  work  of  the  goldsmiths  of  contemporary 
Egypt,  especially  in  that  of  those  who,  living  in  remote 
villages,  have  come  less  under  European  influence  than  their 
colleagues  in  the  cities.  The  models  they  copy  are  never 
of  so  delicate  an  imagination  or  so  skilled  an  execution  ; 
but  we  note  for  the  most  part  the  same  devices  and  the 
same  decorative  parts  of  which  we  note  the  employment 
here ;  lozenges,  zigzags,  simple  twisted  cords,  double-plaited 
small  chains,  rounded  mallets,  threads,  filigrees  in  lines  or  in 
seeds.  The  ingots  are  beaten,  stretched,  fashioned,  polished 
on  the  same  little  anvil.  The  granules  are  blown  as  formerly 
in  charcoal  powder,  and  the  skill  with  which  they  are  put 
together  and  soldered  to  obtain  the  desired  designs  is  as 
great  as  in  the  time  of  the  Pharaohs.  In  that,  as  in 
many  other  industries,  the  Egypt  of  to-day  has  inherited 
from  the  Egypt  of  the  past,  and  we  have  only  to  look  at 
the  artisans  in  their  shops  to  learn  how  the  subjects  of 
Tlamses  II  set  about  their  work. 

Ill 

The  gold  and  silver  vases  are  some  years  later  than 
the  bracelets.  On  one  of  them,  indeed,  may  be  read  the 
name  of  Taouasrit,  a  great-granddaughter  of  Ramses  II 
who  married  successively  Siphtah  and  Setoui  II,  and  who 
enjoyed  her  hour  of  celebrity  in  the  last  days  of  the 
XlXth  Dynasty.    It  is  a  half-opened  lotus,  mounted  on 

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its  stem.  The  calyx  of  the  flower  is  formed  of  thin  gold- 
leaf,  not  lined,  sharply  cut  at  the  outer  edge.  The  stalk 
is  smooth  except  where  the  cartouche  is  engraved :  it 
expands  and  flattens  out  at  the  bottom  to  form  a  foot, 
and  the  widening  is  decorated  with  folioles,  kept  in  place 
by  three  circular  bands.  The  lines  are  suflicientl}^ 
harmonious,  but  the  execution  is  poor,  and  the  object 
would  scarcely  deserve  a  brief  mention  in  our  catalogue 
if  the  royal  name  did  not  assign  it  a  definite  date :  here 
the  artistic  yields  to  the  archaeological  value. 

It  is  otherwise  with  the  gold  vases  that  accompany  it. 
They  are  of  medium  size,  and  the  smallest  of  them  all 
measures  only  about  3  inches  from  bottom  to  top ;  but 
the  harmony  of  the  proportions  makes  them  perfect 
models  of  the  kind  of  plate  that  appeared  at  banquets 
on  the  sideboards  or  tables  of  the  rich.  The  bowl  is 
rounded,  and  surmounted  by  a  straight  neck  almost  as 
high  as  the  bowl  itself,  the  upper  edge  of  which  curves 
slightly  outwards.  The  front  is  decorated  with  a  traced 
ornament  simulating  that  of  one  of  the  large  necklaces 
in  lotus  petals  with  which  the  Egyptians  adorned  them- 
selves on  fete-days.  The  two  bands  with  which  it  was 
fastened  to  the  neck  fall  undulating  on  the  right  and 
left,  and  two  cats — the  two  cats  of  the  goddess  worshipped 
at  Bubastis — look  at  them  inquisitively,  with  attentive 
eye,  distended  back,  quivering  tail,  straight  ears,  as  if 
asking  to  play  with  them.  A  lotus  escapes  below,  and 
on  the  slopes  of  its  corolla  two  geese  glide  flapping  their 
wings.  The  neck  is  divided  into  three  equal  rows, 
separated  by  flat  cords  :  first  a  wreath  of  lotus  buds  points 
downwards,  joined  together  by  a  band  of  threads,  one 
on  top  of  the  other;  then  a  row  of  egg-shaped  fruits, 
and   lastly   a  band   of  round  florets   hollowed   in  the 

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centre  and  the  hollow  encircled  with  points  like 
stamens.  There  is  neither  handle  nor  holder,  but  a 
small  barrel,  through  which  a  gold  ring  was  passed 
and  by  which  the  object  could  be  hung  up,  was  fastened 
by  three  rivets  to  the  lotus  buds  on  the  side  opposite 
to  that  of  the  necklace.  The  barrel  is  of  bluish  faience 
set  in  a  gold  mount  with  a  terminal  flower.  It  shows 
signs  of  wear  and  is  dented  in  several  places,  but  none 
of  the  blows  it  suffered  have  seriously  injured  it :  it 
is  as  perfect  as  at  the  moment  it  issued  new  from  the 
shop.  The  choice  of  motives  is  elegant,  the  grouping 
irreproachable,  the  composition  bold  and  a  little  sum- 
mary :  the  artist  seems  to  have  worked  quickly,  but  he 
possessed  such  mastery  of  his  craft  that  the  rapidity 
of  the  fabrication  in  no  way  injured  the  charm  of  the 
work. 

The  second  vase  is  larger,  for  it  measures  about 
inches  in  height ;  if  the  shape  is  similar,  the  detail 
of  the  decoration  is  very  different.  The  bottom  is  flat, 
and  the  outer  surface  is  filled  by  a  lotus,  drawn  so  as 
to  cover  it  entirely.  The  bowl  is  not  smooth,  but  three - 
fourths  of  it  are  covered  with  a  regular  bossage,  which 
gives  it  the  appearance  of  an  enormous  symbolic  ear  of 
dourah.  The  method  employed  to  produce  it  is  not 
repousse  work  properly  so-called,  hammered  from  the 
inside  to  the  outside.  The  general  network  was  first 
very  lightly  traced  on  the  metal ;  then  the  rounds  were 
outlined  with  a  blunt  instrument  and  hammered  into  a 
furrow,  which,  pressing  down  the  metal  round  them,  left 
them  themselves  in  relief.  The  neck  was  finished  by  an 
almost  imperceptible  rim,  obtained  by  turning  the  upper 
edge  of  the  gold  plaque  outwards.  There  are  four 
rows  instead  of  the  three  of  the  small  vase :  at  the  top 

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To  face  p.  16-2. 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


the  line  of  buds,  then  lotuses  head  downwards,  with 
alternate  bunches  of  grapes  or  undefined  flowers  hanging 
between  them,  then  centred  florets,  and  then  fruits.  The 
suspensory  ring  is  fastened  to  the  band  of  petals  by  a 
motif  in  shape  of  a  calf.  The  beast  lies  on  its  belly,  the 
tail  folded  over  the  back ;  the  head,  turning  to  the  right, 
is  extended  and  raised,  as  if  to  look  over  the  edge  of 
the  neck.  It  seems  to  have  been  chiselled  in  the  solid 
metal,  and  not  engrafted,  and  then  finished  with  the 
graver.  It  is  treated  broadly,  with  a  sure  touch  and  the 
knowledge  of  animal  form  that  is  peculiar  to  the 
Egyptians ;  it  may  be  placed  beside  the  couchant  calves 
that  serve  as  perfume  caskets  and  are  masterpieces  of 
sculpture  in  wood :  it  will  lose  nothing  by  the  comparison. 
The  whole  presents  the  same  characteristics  as  the  pre- 
ceding vase,  and  when  closely  examined  we  are  soon 
convinced  that  it  comes  from  the  same  workshop ;  indeed, 
there  is  little  risk  of  mistake  if  we  attribute  both  to 
the  same  artist. 

It  is  the  same  with  the  two  silver  jugs  which  accompany 
the  two  gold  vases :  they  have  a  common  origin,  and 
an  equal  importance  for  oriental  toreumatology.  One  of 
them,  unfortunately,  was  broken,  and  we  do  not  possess 
all  the  pieces  ;  but  we  have  enough  to  be  sure  that  it 
resembled  the  one  that  has  come  to  us  intact.  The 
bowl  is  covered  to  two-thirds  of  its  height  with  longi- 
tudinal rows  of  fruits,  sitting  one  on  the  other  like  the 
scales  of  a  pine  cone.  Here  again  it  is  not  ordinary 
repousse  work,  but  the  outline  of  each  scale  has  been 
marked  round  and  the  metal  then  pressed  down  from 
outside  to  inside.  The  smooth  belt  which  lies  between 
the  embossing  and  the  rise  of  the  neck  carries  round 
the  whole  of  the  vase  a  single  line  of  hieroglyphics  ex- 

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Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

pressing  a  wish  for  the  eternal  hfe  and  prosperity  of 
the  royal  cupbearer,  Toumoumtaouneb,  then  a  vignette 
and  the  owner  in  worship  before  a  goddess,  who  is 
pacific  and  Egyptian  on  the  perfect  vase,  but  bellicose 
and  foreign  on  the  broken  vase,  armed  with  lance  and 
buckler.  Toumoumtaouneb  was  a  person  of  importance 
in  his  time :  not  only  was  he  entitled  chief  cupbearer, 
but  he  is  proclaimed  the  king's  messenger  in  all  barbarous 
lands,  and  he  doubtless  brought  back  his  pious  regard  for 
the  bellicose  goddess  from  one  of  his  journeys  in  Syria. 
That  is  the  only  exotic  element  found  in  the  decoration 
of  the  two  vases.  The  top  of  the  neck  is  ornamented 
with  a  rim  of  light  gold.  It  has  two  rows  of  subjects, 
one  on  top  of  the  other :  episodes  of  hunting  or  fishing. 
A  fragment  of  the  broken  vase  shows  a  troop  of  wild 
horses  running  towards  a  marsh  with  lotuses,  where  birds 
are  flying.  The  intact  vase  is  unfortunately  encrusted  in 
places  with  oxide,  which  obscures  the  detail  of  the  scenes : 
we  distinguish  outlines  of  boats,  tufts  of  aquatic  plants, 
men  drawing  nets  or  shooting  arrows,  beasts  at  full 
gallop ;  in  the  upper  row  there  are  imaginary  trees  with 
palm-leaves  or  volutes,  among  which  griffins  fight  with 
lions.  If  we  do  not  owe  the  silver  vases  to  the  same 
artist  who  fashioned  the  gold  vases,  he  was  at  least 
endowed  with  the  same  admirable  skill.  He  has  greatly 
simpUfied  the  outline  of  his  figures,  but  the  lines  are 
firm,  even,  sunk  in  the  metal  with  the  precision  of  a 
master :  the  craft  had  no  secrets  from  him.  But  that  is 
not  the  chief  merit  of  his  work :  twenty  others  would 
have  been  capable  of  so  much  among  the  goldsmiths 
who  worked  for  the  king  and  the  great  nobles.  What 
specially  distinguishes  it  is  the  originality  of  the  design 
he  chose  for  the  handle,  and  the  manner  in  which  he 

1G4 


LARGER  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD  VASES  (FRONT  VIEW) . 


To  face  p.  164. 


To  face  p.  IGl. 


THE  VASE  WITH  THE  KID. 
(About  6|  inches  in  height.) 


To  face  p.  164. 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


treated  it.  A  kid,  attracted  by  the  fumes  of  the  wine 
contained  in  the  vase,  had  cUmbed  the  bowl,  and  boldly 
standing  on  its  hind  feet,  the  legs  strained,  the  spine 
rigid,  the  knees  leaning  against  two  gold  calyxes  which 
spring  horizontally  from  the  silver  face,  the  muzzle 
pressed  against  the  moulding,  he  looks  greedily  over  the 
edge  :  a  ring  passing  through  the  nostril  serves  for  hanging 
up  the  vase.  The  body  is  hollow  and  has  been  fashioned 
in  two  pieces  stamped  out,  and  the  two  halves  soldered 
together  longitudinally  and  touched  up  with  the  graver. 
The  horns  and  ears  are  inserted  :  a  triangular  hole  was 
introduced  in  the  middle  of  the  forehead.  The  material 
technique  is  excellent,  but  the  conception  is  even  superior 
to  the  technique :  nothing  could  be  truer  than  the  move- 
ment that  inspires  the  little  creature,  nor  more  ingenious 
than  the  expression  of  greediness  emanating  from  the 
whole  of  the  body. 

Representations  of  many  similar  vases  may  be  seen 
on  the  monuments  of  the  Theban  Dynasties,  with  foxes, 
leopards,  and  human  beings  for  handles,  and  we  had 
asked  ourselves  if  they  really  existed  anywhere  except  in 
the  imagination  of  the  painters  of  the  hypogeums.  There 
is  now  no  manner  of  doubt  that  they  were  faithful  repro- 
ductions of  models  used  by  the  Egyptians,  or  by  the 
nations  with  whom  the  Egyptians  had  relations  either  in 
war  or  in  commerce.  Shall  we  ever  find  one  of  the  large 
table  epergnes  which  show  scenes  of  conquest,  with  trees, 
animals,  statuettes  of  negroes  or  Asiatics  in  gold  or  in 
enamel  ?  They  contained  such  a  large  amount  of  metal 
that  they  would  have  been  cast  into  the  melting-pot  at 
some  moment  of  want,  but  we  await  the  chance  that 
may  give  us  depots  similar  to  that  of  Zagazig :  I  do  not 
think,  however,  that  we  shall  find  pieces  of  a  finer  inspira- 

165 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


tion  or  of  a  more  harmonious  composition  than  that  of 
the  vase  with  the  kid. 

IV 

The  silver  paterae  have  suffered  much.  Hurriedly  piled 
up  in  the  receptacle  where  they  were  hidden,  the  oxide 
bound  them  solidly  together,  and  we  have  not  yet  suc- 
ceeded in  separating  them  all.  It  has  besides  eaten  into 
them  in  so  thorough  a  fashion  that  we  have  only  ven- 
tured to  clean  two  or  three  :  it  is  doubtful  if  we  shall 
ever  risk  touching  the  rest.  It  is  a  misfortune  common  to 
most  of  the  silver  objects  found  in  Egypt :  under  the 
influence  of  the  annual  infiltrations,  the  organic  acids,  of 
which  the  subsoil  of  the  ancient  cities  is  composed,  attack 
them  and  eat  them  away  without  truce  or  mercy.  If 
the  metal  was  of  suitable  thickness  we  might  hope  that  the 
surface  only  was  injured  and  the  core  of  the  metal  un- 
harmed, but  most  often  they  consist  of  a  leaf  of  metal 
of  extreme  thinness,  which  quickly  decomposes.  Thus 
the  object  only  endures  at  all  thanks  to  the  oxide  crust, 
and  if  that  support  was  removed  it  would  be  resolved  into 
dust  and  tiny  fragments. 

Only  one  of  the  paterse  is  almost  intact.  It  measures 
just  over  6  inches  in  diameter  and  about  5^  inches  in  height. 
It  is  flat  at  the  bottom  and  the  sides  are  slightly  inflated 
at  the  base ;  they  are  decorated  at  the  top  with  a  gold 
border  fastened  to  the  rim  by  rivets.  Two  small  decorated 
plates  in  chased  gold  are  furnished  with  rings  which  hold 
a  little  gold  rod  that,  bent  in  three,  serves  to  suspend  it. 
Four  large  gold  rounds  are  placed  flat  on  the  rim  opposite 
the  handle.  The  side  is  smooth,  with  a  single  line  of 
hieroglyphics  on  the  outside — a  kind  wish,  on  the  parvis 

166 


ONE  OF  THE  SILVER  PATERA  OF  ZAGAZIG  (siDE  VIEW). 


SILVER  STRAINER. 

To  face  p.  166. 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


of  the  temple  of  Neith,  for  the  owner,  the  singing- 
girl  of  Neith,  Tamai,  "the  Cat."  It  is  silver  leaf, 
stamped  out  in  a  curve,  the  two  ends  of  which  have 
been  joined  without  any  appreciable  overlapping  and  then 
soldered  together.  The  bottom  is  also  formed  of  silver 
leaf,  which  is  fastened  to  the  lower  edge  of  the  sides 
and  divided  into  two  concentric  rows.  In  the  centre  is 
a  sort  of  umbilicus,  with  a  gold  flat-rimmed  hat  decorated 
by  a  line  of  rounded  beads  of  metal  and  several  lines  of 
little  chains.  The  row  nearest  the  centre  is  slightly 
lower;  on  it  may  be  seen  water  full  of  fish,  with  tufts 
of  lotus  here  and  there.  A  little  papyrus  boat,  occu- 
pied by  a  naked  shepherd  and  a  calf,  floats  amid  the 
patches  of  green  ;  birds  fly  about,  and  two  nude  figures 
of  young  women — the  same  who,  modelled  in  wood, 
provided  the  sculptors  of  the  period  with  a  charming 
design  for  perfume  ladles — swim  side  by  side  in  order  to 
gather  flowers.  A  fiat  space  and  a  line  of  tiny  rounds 
separate  the  pool  from  a  hunting-ground  that  four  con- 
ventional palm-trees  planted  at  equal  distance  divide  into 
the  same  number  of  distinct  compartments.  Two  winged 
sphinxes  with  women's  heads  stand  on  either  side  of  one 
palm,  the  paw  raised  and  stretched  out  as  if  to  pull  down 
the  dates :  two  symmetrical  pairs  of  goats  leap  at  the 
other  palms  to  browse  on  them.  Between  these  groups, 
animals  run  madly  about,  a  wild  ox  chased  by  a  leopard, 
hares  and  gazelles  by  foxes,  dogs,  or  wolves.  The  figures 
of  the  middle  row  are  of  repousse  work  of  so  feeble  a 
character  that  we  should  almost  say  they  are  engraved 
on  the  metal :  those  of  the  outer  row  are  of  a  stronger 
repousse,  and  then  gone  over  again  and  finished  with  the 
graver. 

The  other  paterag  resemble  these  as  far  as  the  technique 

167 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

and  decoration  are  concerned :  they  evidently  came  from 
the  same  workshop  and  belonged  to  one  owner.  Were 
they  for  daily  use  or  only  for  ornament  ?  It  would  seem 
that  they  were  not  fashioned  for  a  definite  use :  at  least 
they  do  not  recall  the  shapes  seen  on  the  monuments  in 
the  hands  of  guests  at  a  banquet  or  of  priests  in  the 
sacrifices.  They  were  hung  on  the  walls  of  halls,  or  placed 
on  sideboards  on  fete-days,  and  if  they  were  given  to  the 
guests,  it  was  not  simply  for  them  to  eat  or  drink  out 
of  Filled  with  fresh  water  or  clear  wine,  it  was  a  sort 
of  miniature  lake,  in  the  centre  of  which  the  point  of 
the  gold  hat  rose  like  an  islet :  the  landscape  and  figures, 
seen  through  the  transparent  medium,  stood  out  on  the 
flat  background  with  peculiar  vivacity,  and  were  effaced 
or  deformed  at  pleasure  when  the  liquid  was  disturbed. 
It  is  not  so  long  since  we  were  pleased  with  similar 
puerilities,  and  Orientals  do  not  disdain  them  to-day : 
the  pateras  were,  perhaps,  toys  rather  than  objects  of  real 
utility.  I  shall  not  say  the  same  of  the  silver  strainers, 
the  forms  of  which  are  elegant  but  not  overladen  with 
ornament,  and  evidently  intended  for  use.  A  wide  opened 
funnel,  a  plaque  at  the  bottom  pierced  with  tiny  little 
holes — the  handle  alone  testifies  to  any  artistic  attempt — 
an  open  papyrus  flower,  the  petals  of  which,  bent  over  the 
stem,  lean  on  the  rim  of  the  funnel.  It  is  a  useful  im- 
plement for  kitchen  or  cellar,  well  adapted  to  its  end, 
easy  to  keep  clean,  in  a  word  practical,  a  thing  in  truth 
that  the  pateras  are  not. 

V 

It  is  clear,  then,  that  the  interest  of  the  find  is  great 
in  itself  on  account  of  the  number  and  beauty  of  the 

168 


To  face  p.  168. 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


objects.  Until  now  the  greater  part  of  the  goldsmiths' 
work  we  possess  was  of  the  Ptolemaic  period,  and  those 
that  could  be  attributed  with  certainty  to  the  Pharaonic 
period  possessed  no  characteristics  that  permitted  us  to 
judge  the  skill  of  the  Egyptians.  The  pictures  on  the 
walls  of  tombs  or  temples  authorize  our  belief  that  it  was 
very  skilful,  but  the  conventions  of  their  designs  are  still 
so  ill-defined  that  there  is  not  always  agreement  about 
their  interpretation.  It  is  even  necessary  to  ask  if  certain 
motives  figuring  outside  a  vase  ought  not  to  be  taken 
as  belonging  to  the  decoration  of  the  inside.  We  now 
have  a  sufficient  number  of  their  works  to  justify  our  con 
jecture,  and  to  declare  in  all  sincerity  that  the  goldsmiths 
were  in  no  way  inferior  to  the  sculptors,  at  least  so  long  as 
the  second  Theban  Empire  lasted. 

These  objects  were  found  on  the  site  of  ancient 
Bubastis,  and  the  presence  of  the  cats  of  the  goddess 
Bastit  on  several  of  them,  as  well  as  the  name  of  Tamai, 
the  Cat,  that  is  on  the  chief  vase,  seem  to  point  that  they 
were  made  in  the  place  that  has  restored  them  to  us. 
It  is  true  that  Tamai  was  a  singing-girl  of  Neith,  living 
in  the  enclosed  space  before  the  temple  of  Neith,  and 
that  might  be  a  counter-indication,  at  least  so  far  as  these 
objects  are  concerned.  Setting  aside  the  question  of 
origin,  which  is  too  uncertain,  we  may  ask  if  they  are 
really  Egyptian  by  inspiration,  or  if  there  is  not  a  risk 
in  examining  them  more  closely  of  the  discovery  of  proofs 
of  some  foreign  influence.  For  about  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  now,  Assyria,  Chaldasa,  Asia  Minor,  Crete  and 
the  Egyptian  islands  have  become  better  known  to  us, 
and  the  scholars  who  have  studied  those  places  have  not 
been  slow  to  despoil  Egypt  in  their  favour :  it  is  too 
often  sufficient  for  an  object  or  an  artistic  design  frequently 

169 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


occurring  on  Egyptian  monuments  to  be  found  in  those 
places  at  once  to  attribute  to  them  the  original  invention 
or  ownership.  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  many  of  these 
claims  are  not  legitimate,  and  that  in  a  more  general  way 
it  is  exceedingly  rash  in  the  case  of  a  civilization  so  com- 
plex and  distant  in  its  beginnings  as  that  of  Egypt  at  the 
time  of  the  second  Theban  Empire,  to  claim  the  ability  to 
discern  all  the  elements  it  borrowed  from  outside.  We 
know  how  rapidly  the  peoples  of  the  Nile  assimilate  the 
foreigner :  in  ancient  times,  it  was  with  the  arts  as  with  men, 
and  forms  of  architecture,  of  drawing,  of  industrial  produc- 
tion, transplanted  among  them,  either  quickly  disappeared 
and  left  no  trace,  or  yielded  to  the  conditions  of  the 
country,  and  became  so  completely  fused  with  the  taste  of 
its  environment  that  it  is  now  scarcely  possible  to  distin- 
guish the  foreign  from  the  native.  I  believe  that  Egypt 
certainly  accepted  exotic  types ;  but  the  lands  with 
which  she  had  relations  did  not  abstain  from  imitating 
her,  and  from  the  most  distant  ages.  She  gave  to  others 
at  least  as  much  as  she  received  from  them,  and  in  many 
cases  where  the  question  of  filiation  has  recently  been 
determined  against  her,  it  would  be  well  to  suspend  that 
judgment,  if  not  to  upset  it. 

In  this  case,  I  imagine  that  it  will  not  enter  any  one's 
mind  to  dispute  that  the  bracelets  of  Ramses  II  and 
the  chalice  of  Taouasrit  are  Egyptian  pure  and  simple. 
The  two  gold  vases  and  the  two  silver  jugs  present  no 
foreign  characteristic  :  the  gold  kid  is  of  the  same  family 
as  the  goats  sculptured  fifteen  or  twenty  centuries  earlier 
in  the  JNlemphian  bas-reliefs,  standing  on  their  hind  legs 
and  nibbling  at  a  bush.  The  pateree,  it  is  true,  resemble 
the  Phoenician  gold  and  bronze  cups  so  often  found  in 
the  Euphrates  districts  and  in  the  lands  on  the  shores 

170 


The  Treasure  of  Zagazig 


of  the  Mediterranean :  but  no  one  has  refused  to  admit 
that  they  were  imitations  of  Egyptian  models,  and 
perhaps  a  more  impartial  examination  would  lead 
archaeologists  to  restore  some  of  them  at  least  to  Egypt. 
At  any  rate,  the  treasure  of  Zagazig  shows  us  what 
those  models  ought  to  be  :  the  Phoenicians  were  not  un- 
mindful of  them  and  respected  the  general  arrangement, 
even  if  they  often  modified  the  detail.  One  element  only 
in  the  scenes  of  the  two  rows  may  be  exotic :  the  female 
sphinx  with  the  strange  locks  of  hair,  if  we  choose  to 
see  in  her  a  derivative  of  the  griffin  rather  than  a 
fantastic  deformation  of  the  male  sphinx  of  a  former  age. 
But  even  so,  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  griffin 
belongs  to  the  ancient  national  foundations  like  the  oxen 
and  gazelles,  goats,  dogs,  leopards  seen  by  its  side  :  its 
presence  would  only  prove — if  its  form  was  so  characteristic 
that  we  could  not  refuse  to  believe  it  an  incongruity — that 
it  was  borrowed  from  the  arts  of  Syria  or  Chald^ea  by 
some  artist  tired  of  always  using  the  traditional  types  of 
his  country. 


171 


XVIII 


THREE  STATUETTES  IN  WOOD 

[The  Louvre) 

The  three  little  wooden  figures  reproduced  here  are  of 
Theban  origin,  and  represent  persons  who  lived  under  the 
conqueror-kings  of  the  XVIIIth  and  XlXth  Dynasties. 

The  first  was  found  in  the  Salt  collection,  purchased  by 
Champollion  at  Leghorn  in  1825,  which  forms  the  basis 
of  the  Louvre  collection.^  It  is  a  young  woman  in  a  long 
clinging  dress  trimmed  with  a  band  of  embroidery  in 
white  thread  running  from  top  to  bottom.  She  wears  a 
gold  necklace  of  three  rows  and  gold  bracelets.  On  her 
head  is  a  wig,  the  hair  of  which  hangs  down  to  the  rise 
of  the  breast ;  the  wig  is  kept  in  place  by  a  large  gilded 
band  simulating  a  crown  of  leaves  arranged  points  down- 
wards. The  right  arm  hangs  down  beside  the  body,  and 
the  hand  held  an  object,  probably  in  metal,  which  has 
disappeared  ;  the  left  arm  is  folded  across  the  chest,  and 
the  hand  clasps  the  stem  of  a  lotus,  the  bud  pointing 
between  the  breasts.    The  body  is  supple  and  well-formed, 

*  Champollion,  "Notice  descriptive  des  monuments  egyptiens  du 
Musee  Charles  X,"  1827,  8vo,  describes  the  object  as  follows  :  "  85. 
Hard  wood.  A  woman  named  Nai,  standing,  dressed  in  a  long  fringed 
tunic,  hair  plaited.  The  statuette  was  dedicated  by  her  brother,  Phtah- 
Mai,  auditor  of  justice,"  pp.  68-9.  Now  the  little  figure  is  numbered 
37  ;  it  is  in  case  A  of  the  "  Salle  civile  "  (first  shelf). 

172 


Three  Statuettes  in  Wood 

the  breast  young,  straight,  shght,  the  face  broad,  and 
smiling  with  something  of  softness  and  vulgarity.  The 
artist  was  unable  to  avoid  heaviness  in  the  arrangement  of 
the  coiffure,  but  he  has  modelled  the  body  with  an  elegant 
and  chaste  delicacy;  the  dress  follows  the  form  without 
revealing  it  indiscreetly,  and  the  gesture  with  which  the 
young  woman  presses  the  flower  against  her  is  natural. 
The  statuette  is  painted  dark  red,  except  the  eyes  and  the 
embroidery,  which  are  white,  and  the  wig,  which  is  black : 
the  bracelets,  the  necklace,  and  the  bandeau  are  of  a  yellow 
gold  identical  with  the  small  book  exhibited  in  the  glass 
case  marked  Z  in  the  "  Salle  civile."  ^ 

Two  inscriptions  engraved  on  the  pedestal,  and  then 
painted  yellow,  inform  us  of  the  name  of  the  woman,  and 
of  that  of  the  individual  who  dedicated  the  statue.  One 
on  the  front  runs  thus : 

(A)  Adoration  to  Phtah 

SoKAR-OsiIlI,t  GREAT  GOD,  PrINCE 

OF  Eternity,  to  whom  are  given  all  kinds  of  good 

THINGS  AND  PURE  THINGS,  TO  THE  DOUBLE  OF  THE 
PERFECT  LADY  NaI  OF  THE  TRUE  PERFECT  VOICE. 

The  other  is  engraved  on  the  right  side,  and  runs: 

(B)  It  is  her  Brother  who  makes  her  name  to  live, 

THE  servant  PhTAH-MaI. 

Cf.  E.  de  Rouge,  "  Notice  des  principaux  monuments,"  p.  82. 
i  SOKARI  (Ji^xapLQ  of  the  fragment  of  Cratinus  the  Younger, 
"  Fragm.  Comicor.  grsecorum,"  edition  Didot)  was  the  god  of  the  dead 
at  Memphis,  as  Osiris  was  at  Abydos  ;  so  they  were  soon  identified 
one  with  the  other,  Sokar-Osiri,  and  with  Phtah,  Phtah- Sokari,  Phtah- 
Sokar-Osiri.  Here  the  scribe,  who  first  took  the  three  sacred  names  as 
belonging  to  one  same  god  whom  he  qualified  as  Prince  of  Eternity 
in  the  singular,  later  regarded  them  as  belonging  to  three  different 
gods,  and  used  the  plural  pronoun,  SE,  variant  of  SEN  :  "to  whom  THEY 
give  "  instead  of    to  whom  HE  gives." 

173 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


From  other  monuments  we  know  more  than  one 
Egyptian  of  the  name  Phtah-Mai,  and  more  than  one 
lady  Nai :  but  none  of  them  has  any  claim  to  be  identified 
with  our  two  personages.  Phtah-Mai  is  not  a  noble:  he 
filled  a  very  humble  post,  that  of  a  page  attached  to  a 
noble,  or  a  subordinate  employe  of  a  temple  or  of 
a  court  of  justice.  But  the  charm  of  the  monument  he 
devoted  to  the  memory  of  his  sister  is  only  the  more 
remarkable. 

The  personage  in  the  middle  is  a  priest,  standing, 
wearing  the  short  wig  with  little  locks  of  hair  in  rows 
one  above  the  other.  The  bust  is  bare,  and  his  only 
garment  is  a  long  skirt  falling  half  way  down  the  leg, 
spread  out  in  front  into  a  sort  of  pleated  apron.  In  his 
two  hands  he  bears  a  sacred  insignia  consisting  of  a  ram's 
head  surmounted  by  the  solar  disk,  and  forming  an  segis, 
the  whole  set  into  a  staff  of  fairly  large  dimensions :  the 
attitude  is  one  of  repose.  The  third  figure,  on  the  con- 
trary, is  full  of  movement  and  activity.  It  is  an  officer 
in  semi-military  costume  of  the  time  of  Amenophis  III 
or  of  his  successors  :  a  small  wig,  a  clinging  smock  with 
sleeves,  a  short  loin-cloth  tightly  girded  over  the  hips  and 
scarcely  descending  to  the  middle  of  the  thigh,  decorated 
in  front  with  a  small  piece  of  stuff  standing  out,  pleated 
lengthwise.  These  two  statuettes  are  painted  dark  red 
Avith  the  exception  of  the  wig,  which  is  black,  of  the  cornea 
of  the  eyes,  which  is  white,  and  the  insignia  of  the  priest, 
which  is  yellow.  The  old  pedestal  has  disappeared,  and 
with  it  the  name.  Like  the  limestone  and  wooden  statues 
of  large  dimensions,  these  formed  part  of  the  funerary 
equipment :  they  were  the  supports  of  souls  in  miniature, 
and  served  as  a  body  for  the  double  of  the  model  and 
kept  alive  the  name  of  a  person  who  had  been  loved  or 

174 


Three  Statuettes  in  Wood 


well  known.  There  are  a  large  number  of  them  in  the 
museums,  and  nearly  all  are  of  the  same  epoch.  Neither 
the  Ancient  nor  the  Middle  Empire  made  them — Saite  art 
preferred  hard  stone :  the  wooden  statuettes  that  I  have 
so  far  seen  are  of  the  second  Theban  period,  and  belong 
to  the  XVIIIth,  XlXth,  and  XXth  Dynasties. 

Some  of  them,  if  not  all,  were  used  for  purposes  that 
seem  strange  to  us.  Several  had  little  rolls  of  papyrus 
fastened  to  their  pedestal  or  their  body,  ordinary  letters 
that  the  writers  sent  to  one  another  ;  one  possessed  by  the 
Leyden  Museum  is  an  adjuration  addressed  to  the  perfect 
soul  of  the  lady  Ankhari  by  her  still  living  husband :  ^ 
What  fault  have  I  committed  against  thee  that  I  should 
be  reduced  to  the  miserable  condition  in  which  I  find 
myself?  What  have  I  done  to  justify  this  attack  on  me, 
if  no  fault  has  been  committed  against  thee  ?  From  the 
time  I  became  thy  husband  until  this  day,  what  have  I  done 
against  thee  that  I  should  conceal  ?  What  shall  I  do  when 
1  have  to  bear  witness  to  my  conduct  in  regard  to  thee, 
and  shall  appear  with  thee  before  the  tribunal  of  the 
dead,  addressing  myself  to  the  cycle  of  the  infernal  gods, 
and  thou  wilt  be  judged  after  this  writing,  which  is  in 
words  uttering  my  complaint  in  regard  to  what  thou 
hast  done.  What  wilt  thou  do  ? "  The  general  tone  of  the 
piece  is,  as  is  clear,  one  of  complaint  and  accusation.  The 
husband  laments  about  *'  the  miserable  condition  to  which 
he  is  reduced,"  three  years  after  he  has  become  a  widower ; 
then  he  relates  the  incidents  of  his  conjugal  life  in  order 
to  show  the  ingratitude  he  has  received  for  his  trouble 

*  The  figure  to  which  it  was  fastened  is  reproduced  in  Leemans, 
Egyptian  Monuments  in  the  Museum  of  Antiquities  of  Holland  at 
Leyden,"    Part  I,  PI.  XXIV;  cf.  Chabas,  "Notice  sommaire  des 
papyrus  egyptiens,"  p.  19. 

175 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


and  care.  "  When  thou  becamest  my  wife,  I  was  young, 
I  was  with  thee,  I  did  not  desert  thee,  I  caused  no  grief 
to  thy  heart.  Now  so  I  acted  when  I  was  young  ;  when 
I  was  promoted  to  high  dignities  by  Pharaoh,  I  did  not 
desert  thee ;  I  said  :  '  Let  them  be  mutual  between  us ! ' 
and  as  everybody  who  came  saw  me  with  thee,  thou  didst 
not  receive  those  whom  thou  didst  not  know,  for  I  acted 
according  to  thy  will.  Now,  here  it  is,  thou  hast  not  satis- 
fied my  heart  and  I  shall  plead  with  thee,  and  the  true 
will  be  distinguished  from  the  false."  He  dwells  on  and 
reminds  her  of  his  kindnesses  :  "  I  have  never  been  found 
acting  brutally  to  thee  like  a  peasant  who  enters  other 
people's  houses."  When  she  died,  during  an  eight  months' 
absence  occasioned  by  his  service  with  Pharaoh,  "  I  did 
what  was  seeming  for  thee :  I  lamented  thee  greatly  with 
my  people  opposite  my  dwelling,  I  gave  stuffs  and  swath- 
ings  for  thy  burial,  and  for  that  purpose  had  many 
linen  cloths  woven,  and  I  omitted  no  good  offering  I 
could  make  thee."^  The  poor  man  does  not  state  clearly 
the  nature  of  the  troubles  from  which  he  suffered.  Per- 
haps he  imagined  that  his  wife  tormented  him  in  the 
form  of  a  spectre ;  perhaps,  what  after  all  comes  to  the 
same  thing  in  the  belief  of  an  Egyptian,  he  was  attacked 
by  diseases  and  overwhelmed  with  infirmities  that  he 
attributed  to  the  malignity  of  the  dead  woman.  We  are 
reminded  of  the  strange  actions  that  the  Icelanders  of  the 
Middle  Ages  practised  against  ghosts.  The  administration 
set  on  foot  the  whole  cortege  of  officials  and  the  whole  of  its 
legal  code  to  bring  the  accusation,  judge  and  condemn  the 
dead  who  persisted  in  haunting  the  house  in  which  they 

The  facsimile  of  the  text  is  in  Leemans,  "  Monuments,"  Part  II, 
PI.  CLXXXIII-CLXXXIV,  and  is  translated  and  annotated  in  Maspero, 
Etudes  egyptiennes,''  vol.  i.,  pp.  145-59. 

176 


Three  Statuettes  in  Wood 


had  lived.  The  records  of  the  causes  are  extant  and 
testify  to  the  gravity  that  presided  over  this  strange  pro- 
cedure. The  Leyden  papyrus  certainly  relates  to  an  affair 
of  the  kind.  A  husband,  addressing  his  wife's  soul, 
summons  her  to  suspend  persecutions  that  are  in  no  way 
justified,  under  pain  of  answering  for  her  conduct  before 
the  infernal  jury.  If  she  did  not  heed  this  preliminary 
advice,  the  matter  would  be  brought  later  before  the 
tribunal  of  the  gods  of  the  west  and  pleaded  :  the  papyrus 
would  serve  as  a  piece  of  convincing  evidence,  and  then 
"the  true  would  be  distinguished  from  the  false." 

There  was  one  difficulty  to  be  overcome :  how  was 
the  summons  to  be  sent  to  her  ?  The  Egyptians  were 
never  embarrassed  when  it  was  a  question  of  communica- 
ting with  the  other  world.  The  husband  read  the  letter 
in  the  tomb,  then  fastened  it  to  a  figure  of  the  woman. 
Thus  she  could  not  fail  to  receive  the  adjuration  as  she 
received  the  funerary  banquet,  or  the  effect  of  the  prayers 
that  assured  her  happiness  beyond  the  tomb.  The  pre- 
occupations of  art  held  only  a  subordinate  place  in  statues 
like  those  of  the  lady  Nai  and  her  two  companions  :  the 
religious  idea  was  predominant,  and  it  was  religion  which 
gave  the  monument  its  meaning. 


177 


M 


XIX 


A  FRAGMENT  OF  A  THEBAN  STATUETTE* 

The  excavations  undertaken  by  Mr.  Mond  on  the  eastern 
slope  of  the  hills  of  Cheikh-Abd-el-Gournah,  in  one  of  the 
richest  of  the  Theban  cemeteries  of  the  XVIIIth  and  XlXth 
Dynasties,  have  already  given  several  valuable  monuments 
to  the  "  Service  des  Antiquites  "  ;  and  nothing  surpasses  or 
even  equals  the  fragment  illustrated  here.  The  statuette 
to  which  it  belongs  was  broken  in  the  middle.  The  hips 
and  legs  have  disappeared,  as  well  as  the  right  arm, 
and  the  plinth  against  which  the  back  leaned  ;  Mr,  Mond 
eagerly  sought  the  missing  pieces  among  the  residue  of  his 
find,  but  in  vain;  they  were  not  forthcoming,  and  were 
doubtless  either  destroyed  in  ancient  times,  or  carried 
off  by  some  amateur  during  the  nineteenth  century. 
The  fragment  that  remains  to  us  measures  nearly  a  foot 
in  length  and  about  inches  across  the  shoulders ;  there 
is  nothing  in  the  lines  by  which  one  can  determine 
whether  the  person  it  represents  was  seated  or  standing. 
I  am  inclined  to  think  that,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  time,  the  attitude  resembled  that  of  the  little 
lady  Toui  in  the  Louvre,  t  standing,  the  feet  nearly  on 

*  Extract  from  the  Revue  de  Vart  ancien  et  moderne,  1905,  vol. 
xvii,  p.  403. 

t  See  the  Chapter  on  the  little  lady  Toui,  pp.  183-189. 

178 


THE   MOND  STATUETTE   (FRONT  VIEW). 


To  face  p.  178. 


Fragment  of  a  Theban  Statuette 

the  same  level,  the  right  arm  hanging  down,  the  head 
erect,  with  the  wig  of  ceremony,  and  the  dress  of  great 
holidays. 

The  material  employed  by  the  sculptor  is  limestone  of 
the  kind  the  inscriptions  describe  as  the  fine  white  stone  of 
Tourah,  but  thick  beds  of  it  extend  along  the  sides  of 
the  valley  of  Egypt  from  the  environs  of  Cairo  to  the 
defiles  of  Gebelein.  It  abounds  in  the  Theban  plain,  and 
although  it  is  too  split  and  cracked  in  every  sense  to  be 
of  any  use  for  building  purposes,  it  is  admirably  suited 
for  designs  of  restricted  dimensions,  such  as  those  of  our 
statuette.  It  was  most  probably  carved  in  the  stone 
of  Cheikh-Abd-el-Gournah  itself,  perhaps  in  one  of  the 
blocks  extracted  at  the  time  of  hollowing  out  the  tomb 
for  which  it  was  destined.  It  forms  an  excellent  substance, 
supple  and  firm  at  the  same  time,  and  subserves  with  an 
inimitable  docility  the  boldest  and  the  most  delicate  strokes 
of  the  chisel ;  the  grain  of  marble,  crystalline  and  almost 
metallic,  makes  the  sensation  on  the  eye  of  a  rigid 
envelope  in  which  the  subject  is,  as  it  were,  imprisoned, 
while  limestone,  softer  and  richer,  better  reproduces  the 
elasticity  of  the  surface  of  flesh  and  the  free  play  of 
the  muscles  under  the  skin.  Our  statuette  had  been 
illuminated  in  accordance  with  custom,  but  it  bears  only 
imperceptible  traces  of  painting  and  has  the  natural  colour 
of  old  limestone,  a  tone  between  cream  and  yellowed 
ivory,  which  recalls  the  paleness  of  Egyptian  women.  The 
detail  of  the  clothing  and  ornaments  which  was  due  to 
the  brush  has  vanished,  and  is  only  indicated  on  the  border 
of  the  mantle  by  faint  tooling.  It  has  thus  lost  its  archseo- 
logical  value,  but  has  gained  an  aspect  of  refinement 
wanting  in  works  where  the  colour  has  been  preserved 
intact. 

179 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


The  young  woman  who  has  thus  left  us  her  portrait 
hved  under  the  XlXth  Dynasty,  at  a  time  when  fashion 
imposed  enormous  head-dresses  and  scanty  clothing  on  its 
votaries.  An  almost  transparent  linen  covers  the  left 
shoulder,  then  crosses  the  chest  and  is  knotted  under  the 
right  armpit,  concealing  the  rest  of  the  costume ;  the 
left  hand  is  freed  from  it  and  clasps  a  lotus  stem,  the  flower 
reaching  to  the  hollow  between  the  breasts.  The  bust 
has  not  yet  attained  its  plenitude,  but  the  breasts  are 
well  shaped  and  well  separated,  but  so  slight  that  they 
scarcely  make  any  impression  on  the  linen  ;  the  lines  of 
the  arm,  shoulder,  and  neck  indicate  thinness.  The  artist 
has  well  understood  the  characteristics  of  the  dawn  of 
womanhood,  and  the  discreet  fashion  in  which  he  permits 
us  to  guess  the  slender  grace  beneath  the  garment  is  that 
of  a  master  craftsman,  but  it  is  in  the  head  and  face  that 
he  shows  the  full  measure  of  his  talent.  The  head  is  fitted 
into  a  wig  of  complicated  structure  which  yields  nothing 
in  size  to  the  majestic  peruke  of  Louis  XIV.  A  double 
ribbon  running  from  the  forehead  to  the  back  of  the  neck 
divides  the  hair  into  two  equal  masses,  which  are  them- 
selves divided  into  volutes  of  little  waved  locks,  each 
formed  of  two  thin  tresses,  twisted  together  at  the  ex- 
tremity. The  whole  forms  a  stiff  heavy  fabric  which, 
unskilfully  interpreted,  would  make  the  piece  ugly,  no 
matter  how  successful  in  the  other  parts.  Our  sculptor 
has  made  no  change  in  the  general  arrangement — his 
model  would  not  have  permitted  it — but  he  has  adjusted 
the  parts  with  such  happy  ingenuity  that  the  monster  wig, 
instead  of  overpowering  the  face,  acts  as  a  frame  to  it 
and  sets  it  off. 

It  is  of  the  purest  Egyptian  type,  not  the  heavy, 
brutal  type  which  predominates  in  the  Memphian  age  and 

180 


THE   MOND   STATUETTE  (pROFILE). 


To  face  p.  1£0. 


Fragment  of  a  Theban  Statuette 


among  the  fellahs  to-day,  but  an  elegant  refined  type 
of  which  numerous  examples  are  provided  by  statuettes 
of  all  periods.  The  forehead  appears  to  be  rather  low, 
but  we  cannot  be  sure  if  it  was  so  by  nature,  or  if  it  is 
the  wig  which  conceals  its  height.  The  eyes  are  long, 
almond-shaped,  slanting  towards  the  temple,  widely 
opened.  The  eyelids  are  drawn  clearly,  almost  sharply, 
and  meet  at  an  acute  angle  both  at  the  inner  corner 
and  at  the  outer  commissure.  The  globe  of  the  eye  is 
rather  prominent,  the  pupil  was  added  with  the  brush, 
and  a  sort  of  greyish  tone  vaguely  marks  the  place. 
The  eyebrows  are  a  flattened  bow,  thin  and  regular. 
The  nose  is  attached  to  the  superciliary  arcade  by  a  fairly 
accentuated  curve ;  it  is  straight,  thin,  rounded  at  the 
end,  with  delicate  nostrils.  The  lower  part  of  the  face 
is  thick-set,  and  of  so  firm  a  cut  that  with  age — if  age 
ever  came — it  would  have  become  hard.  The  lips  are 
full,  thick,  edged  the  whole  length,  split  in  the  middle: 
they  are  pressed  together  as  if  to  keep  back  a  smile. 
The  whole  face  changes  in  character  and  almost  in 
century,  according  to  the  angle  from  which  it  is  looked 
at.  Seen  from  the  front  it  is  round  and  full,  with  neither 
superabundance  nor  softness  of  flesh :  it  is  the  little  middle- 
class  girl  of  Thebes,  pretty,  but  common  in  form  and 
expression.  Seen  from  the  side  between  the  hanging 
pieces  of  the  wig,  as  if  between  two  long  ringlets  falling 
on  the  shoulders,  it  assumes  a  malicious,  roguish  expression 
not  ordinarily  usual  in  Egyptian  women :  it  might  be 
one  of  our  contemporaries  who  from  caprice  or  coquetry 
had  put  on  the  ancient  coiffure. 

Who  was  she  in  her  lifetime,  and  what  was  her  name  ? 
The  fragment  which  represents  her  was  found  at  the 
bottom  of  a  funerary  pit,  in  the  court-yard  of  the  tomb 

181 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

of  Menna,  and  Menna  flourished  under  the  XlXth 
Dynasty.  Was  she  one  of  his  wives,  or  daughters,  or 
sisters?  The  inscription  which  might  have  told  us  is 
heaven  knows  where,  and  it  will  be  a  great  piece  of 
good  fortune  if  it  is  ever  found. 


182 


XX 


THE  LADY  TOUI  OF  THE  LOUVRE  AND  EGYPTIAN 
INDUSTRIAL  SCULPTURE  IN  WOOD* 

The  little  lady  Toui,  who  entered  the  Louvre  last  year, 
was  in  her  lifetime  a  singer  in  the  service  of  Amon. 
The  title  gives  rise  to  doubt  and  scarcely  permits  us  to 
determine  to  what  class  of  society  she  belonged.  The 
singers  in  the  service  of  Amon  were  of  all  ranks,  some 
married,  others  free.  They  were  all  bound  to  serve  the 
god ;  they  shook  before  him  the  sistrum  that  kept  off 
spirits,  or  wielded  the  magic  whip,  the  moiiait,  with  which 
they  beat  the  air  to  keep  off  with  heavy  blows  the  evil 
beings  who  floated  invisible  in  it.  The  most  humble  were 
of  easy  morals,  and  the  series  of  licentious  vignettes  in 
the  Turin  Museum  leaves  no  room  for  doubt  regarding 
the  kind  of  life  they  led.  They  were  the  servants  of  the 
temple ;  they  placed  their  bodies  at  the  free  disposal  of 
their  master  Amon,  and  whoever  addressed  them  in  his 
name  would  not  meet  with  refusal.  In  the  Grasco-Roman 
period  the  high-priest  chose  a  young  girl  of  rare  beauty 
from  among  the  richest  and  noblest  families  of  Thebes 
and  solemnly  dedicated  her.  She  became  the  chief  singer^ 
and  shared  the  life  of  her  companions  of  lower  origin  as 
long  as  youth  lasted ;  when  she  was  past  the  age  of  child- 

*  Published  in  La  Nature,  1895,  vol.  lii.,  pp.  211-14. 

183 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


bearing  she  retired,  and  an  honourable  marriage  allowed 
her  to  end  her  days  amid  the  respect  of  all.  The  lady 
Toui's  position  seems  to  have  been  less  curious.  The 
wives  of  priests  or  those  of  citizens  affiliated  to  the  dif- 
ferent brotherhoods  of  Amon  formed  associations  of 
singers  who  appeared  in  the  temples  on  days  of  festival 
or  at  the  hours  fixed  for  certain  ceremonies :  they  only 
accepted  the  duty  of  playing  the  sistrum  or  of  plying 
the  whip,  leaving  to  the  others  the  rest  of  the  function. 
Toui  doubtless  had  a  husband  and  children  somewhere  in 
Thebes.  In  an  Egyptian  tale"^  the  heroine,  Tbouboui, 
daughter  of  a  priest  of  Bastit,  replies  to  the  lover  who  is 
importuning  her :  "I  am  pure,  I  am  no  wanton."  Toui 
might  say  the  same  to  us  if,  trusting  to  her  title,  we 
confused  her  with  the  common  singing-girls^  who  yielded 
their  bodies  to  all. 

The  statuette  that  represents  her  may  deservedly  rank 
as  one  of  the  best  works  which  have  recently  emerged 
from  Theban  soil.  She  stands  upright  in  the  hieratical 
attitude  of  repose,  one  foot  in  advance,  the  head  fixed, 
the  right  arm  hanging  by  her  side,  the  left  arm  across 
the  chest,  holding  the  sacred  whip,  the  monait,  folded  up. 
She  wears  the  ceremonial  costume,  a  long  robe  with 
sleeves,  narrow,  crossed  in  front,  edged  with  a  heavy,  stiff 
fringe,  a  broad  necklace  round  the  neck ;  on  her  head  the 
immense  wig  fashionable  among  the  Thebans  in  the 
eleventh  and  tenth  centuries  B.C.,  numerous  little  tresses 
gathered  together  at  the  ends  into  two  or  three,  and 
finished  off  with  tassels  or  little  curls.  The  effect  was 
fairly  ugly :  it  lent  heaviness  to  the  top  of  the  figure, 

*  "  The  Adventure  of  Satni-Khamois  with  the  Mummies,"  in  G. 
Maspero,  "  Les  contes  populaires  de  I'Egypte  ancienne,"  4th  edition, 
p.  146. 

184 


THE   LADY  TOUI,    STATUETTE   IN  WOOD. 
The  Louvre. 


To  face  p.  184. 


The  Lady  Toui  of  the  Louvre 


diminished  the  size  of  the  face,  cramped  the  neck,  con- 
cealed the  fall  of  the  shoulders  and  the  rise  of  the  breasts, 
broke  the  equilibrium  of  the  body.  But  the  anonymous 
artist  who  made  the  portrait  of  the  lady  Toui  has  derived 
an  almost  fortunate  advantage  from  this  deplorable  head- 
dress :  he  has  treated  it  as  a  sort  of  background  which 
sets  off  the  face,  neck,  and  chest.  The  lateral  tufts  of 
hair  frame  the  features  without  making  them  too  heavy, 
and  the  close-fitting  coif  at  the  top  is  placed  on  the  skull 
without  appearing  to  crush  it.  The  slender,  healthy  forms 
of  the  body  are  rendered  in  remarkable  fashion,  and  the 
modelling  of  the  belly  and  legs  shows  itself  under  the 
clinging  stuff  with  a  precision  that  is  in  no  way  brutal. 
In  looking  at  it  we  certainly  recognize  more  than  one 
defect:  the  figure  lacks  suppleness  and  the  face  expres- 
sion ;  the  wood  is  cut  harshly  and  with  an  almost  puerile 
detail.  The  whole,  however,  pleases  by  some  indescribable 
simple  and  chaste  charm :  the  Louvre  was  perfectly  right 
to  acquire  it,  even  if  more  money  was  expended  than  is 
usual  on  Egyptian  objects  of  such  small  size. 

Its  use  is  easy  to  determine ;  it  is  a  miniature  statue 
of  the  double  shut  up  in  the  tombs  of  the  JMemphian 
period.  A  statue  was  not  within  the  reach  of  everybody : 
only  the  rich  could  procure  one,  and  people  of  moderate 
means  were  obliged  to  content  themselves  with  little 
figures  of  less  cost.  The  population  of  priests,  servants, 
singing-girls,  heads  of  the  works  who  lived  round  the 
sanctuary  of  Amon  or  in  the  temples  of  the  necropolis, 
had  many  pretensions  to  luxury  with  slender  resources : 
their  tombs  are  filled  with  objects  which  pretend  to  be 
what  they  are  not,  and  veritably  deceive  the  eye,  destined 
to  give  the  dead  the  illusion  of  opulence ;  massive  wooden 
vases  painted  to  represent  alabaster  or  granite  vases,  rings 

185 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

and  jewels  in  glass  or  enamel  that  appear  to  be  gold 
rings  and  jewels,  furniture  in  common  wood,  varnished, 
speckled,  veined,  to  simulate  furniture  in  rare  woods. 
The  lady  Toui  belonged  to  that  half-needy  class,  and  had 
to  substitute  statuettes  of  carved  and  polished  wood  for 
limestone  or  sandstone  statues.  All  the  museums  in 
Europe  have  similar  ones,  and  through  Champollion,  the 
Louvre  possessed  the  lady  Nai,^^  who  sustains  comparison 
very  well  with  her  new  comrade.  Egyptian  sculptors 
had  acquired  veritable  mastery  in  this  subordinate  form 
of  sculpture,  and  there  are  pieces  of  singular  charm 
among  those  that  have  reached  us.  Take,  for  instance, 
the  little  girl  and  the  woman  I  have  chosen  almost  at 
hazard  in  one  of  the  cases  of  the  Turin  JNluseum.  The 
little  girl  is  standing,  one  foot  in  advance,  the  arms 
hanging  down,  naked  according  to  the  custom  of 
Egyptian  children,  with  a  necklace,  and  a  belt  which 
loosely  surrounds  the  loins,  short  plaited  hair  with  a 
tress  falling  over  the  ears.  The  material  is  less  precious 
than  with  the  lady  Toui,  and  the  work  less  thorough, 
but  has  the  slim  delicacy  of  a  little  Egyptian  girl  of 
eight  or  ten  years  old  ever  been  better  expressed  ?  It 
is  an  exact  portrait,  in  costume  and  figure,  of  the  little 
Nubian  girls  of  the  Cataract  before  the  age  of  puberty 
obliges  them  to  wear  clothes ;  it  is  their  thin  chest, 
slender  hips,  clearly  cut,  delicate  thigh,  their  bearing, 
hesitating  and  bold  at  the  same  time,  the  roguish  ex- 
pression of  their  features. 

The  other  statuette  represents  a  well-dev^eloped  woman 
standing  on  a  round  pedestal  without  a  scrap  of  clothing 
or  veil,  but  very  proud  of  her  head-dress,  and  especially  of 
her  big  earrings.    She  touches  the  right  one  with  her  hand 

-  See  pp.  172-174. 
186 


The  Lady  Toui  of  the  Louvre 


and  makes  it  stand  out  a  little  in  order  to  show  it,  or 
to  assure  herself  that  the  jewel  is  very  becoming ;  the 
head  is  big,  the  shoulders  thin,  the  chest  narrow,  and  the 
sculptor  was  embarrassed  to  render  the  movement  of  the 
arms ;  but  the  eyes  are  so  wide  open,  the  smile  so  con- 
tented, the  expression  of  the  whole  so  intelligent,  that 
we  can  easily  excuse  that  defect. 

Men  were  as  well  treated  as  women  by  this  art  fostered 
by  persons  of  small  means.  Scribes  of  subordinate 
rank,  old  retired  officers,  retail  merchants,  or  men  at  the 
head  of  small  industrial  concerns,  all  of  whom  swarmed 
in  the  poorer  quarters,  felt  as  strongly  as  their  wives,  in 
default  of  the  stone  statue,  the  need  of  acquiring  a 
wooden  image  which  would  show  what  they  had  been 
like  in  their  lifetime.  There  were  as  many  artists  as 
they  wished  to  model  them  in  the  attitude  they  preferred, 
in  their  everyday  costume  or  in  that  of  fete-days,  bearing 
and  likeness  guaranteed.  Those  found  in  the  tombs  in 
the  early  years  of  the  nineteenth  century  form  a  veritable 
gallery,  most  varied  and  curious,  of  the  different  types 
prevailing  from  the  thirteenth  to  the  ninth  century  B.C. 
in  Thebes  and  its  environs  among  the  lower  middle- 
class.  Some  had  been  soldiers,  and  wear  the  light  petti- 
coat bulging  at  the  waist  of  the  Egyptian  foot-soldier ; 
others  had  spent  their  lives  scribbling  in  a  Government 
office ;  the  greater  number  belonged  to  one  of  the 
funerary  professions,  guardians  of  mummies,  decorators 
of  hypogeums,  hewers  of  tombs,  sacristans  or  priests  of 
a  low  order  employed  in  the  minor  offices  of  burials 
or  commemorative  rites.  They  proudly  exhibit  their 
insignia :  they  carry  long  staves  crowned  with  sacred 
emblems — the  human  head  of  Hathor,  the  hawk's  beak 

*  See  Chapter  XVIII,  pp.  172-177. 
187 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

of  Horus — and  everything  in  their  attitude  betrays  the 
pride  and  satisfaction  of  knowing  themselves  so  fine  and 
so  important.  Their  bearing  reveals  what  the  inscriptions 
usually  placed  on  the  pedestal  of  their  statuettes  confirm : 
"It  is  1,  Khabokhni,  the  Servant  of  the  *  True '  Place," 
he  who  poured  the  libations,  or  who,  at  the  canonical 
hours,  distributed  a  portion  of  bread,  flowers,  and  fruits  to 
each  of  the  dead  entrusted  to  his  care.  The  Egyptians 
were  admirable  in  observation  and  full  of  satirical 
humour :  I  would  not  swear  that,  in  impressing  this 
character  of  naive  vanity  on  their  works,  the  sculptors 
were  not  yielding  to  the  temptation  of  discreetly  amusing 
themselves  at  the  expense  of  their  sitters. 

Study  of  these  small  monuments  is  too  much  neg- 
lected. By  considering  the  colossi  of  granite  or  sandstone, 
the  heroic  statues  and  the  ceremonial  groups,  we  are 
inclined  to  recognize  only  qualities  of  grandeur  and  im- 
mobile majesty  in  Egyptian  art ;  the  wooden  statuettes 
show  how,  on  occasion,  it  could  display  charm  and  wit. 
Most  of  them  are  the  products  of  chance,  commercial 
pieces,  prepared  in  advance  for  the  needs  of  customers, 
of  which  a  large  assortment  was  always  kept  in  reserve. 
The  family  desiring  to  offer  one  to  one  of  its  dead  came 
to  get  it  at  the  fairest  price,  and  something  was  sold, 
more  or  less  well  done  according  to  the  sum  that  was 
spent;  the  choice  being  made,  the  piece  was  adapted 
to  its  definitive  destination  by  engraving  on  the  pedes- 
tal, or  on  the  back,  the  names  which  transformed  the 
anonymous  doll  into  a  body  for  the  double  of  a  par- 
ticular individual.  They  were  artisans  who  sculptured 
these  images,  or  rather  manufactured  them  for  the  under- 
takers of  funerals.  Their  education  was  so  complete  and 
their  hand  so  practised  that  they  rarely  fell  very  low; 

188 


The  Lady  Toui  of  the  Louvre 


their  average  productions  are  of  honest  composition  and 
sufficiently  true  in  feeHng.  When  they  were  given 
enough  time  or  commissioned  to  take  great  care  with  a 
piece  of  work,  those  who  combined  natural  talent  with 
the  routine  of  their  craft  produced  work  of  real  value — 
the  statuettes  of  the  lady  Toui,  of  the  little  girl  and  the 
woman  in  the  Turin  Museum,  and  many  others  hidden 
from  the  public  in  the  cupboards  of  our  museums. 


189 


XXI 


SOME  PERFUME  LADLES  OF  THE  XVIIIth  DYNASTY 

{The  Louvre) 

It  is  not  without  reason  that  these  objects  are  called 
perfume  ladles.  The  Egyptians  used  them,  in  fact,  for 
making  either  essences,  pomades,  or  the  various  coloured 
pigments  with  which  both  men  and  women  painted 
the  cheeks,  lips,  eyelids  and  underneath  the  eyes,  the 
nails  and  palms  of  the  hand.  The  form  and  decora- 
tion vary  in  accordance  with  the  epochs.  At  the  time 
of  the  Ramessides,  between  the  fourteenth  and  twelfth 
centuries  B.C.,  fashion  introduced  Syrian  manufactures 
into  Egypt ;  later,  under  the  Bubastis  and  under  the 
Ethiopian  kings  of  the  XXVth  Dynasty,  some  Chal- 
daean  or  Ninevite  manufactures  came  in.  The  five  ladles 
illustrated  here  are  purely  Egyptian  in  origin  and 
style.  The  designs  were  generally  borrowed  from  the 
fauna  and  flora  of  the  valley.  The  first  has  by  way 
of  handle  a  young  girl  lost  among  the  lotuses,  who  is 
gathering  a  bud  ;  a  tuft  of  stems  from  which  two  full- 
blown flowers  escape  attach  the  handle  to  the  bowl,  the 
oval  of  which  has  its  rounded  part  outside  and  the  point 
inside.  In  the  second,  the  young  girl  is  framed  by  two 
stems  of  lotus  flowers  and  papyrus,  and  walks  along  play- 

190 


To  face  p.  190. 


Perfume  Ladles,  XVII Ith  Dynasty 


ing  a  long-handled  guitar.  The  next  ladle  substitutes  a 
bearer  of  offerings  for  the  musician,  and  the  fourth  has 
the  musician  standing  on  a  boat  sailing  among  the  reeds. 
The  last  takes  the  form  of  a  slave,  half  bent  under  an 
enormous  sack.  Nothing  could  be  better  than  the 
general  design  of  the  decoration.  The  artisans  brought 
as  much  conscience  and  skill  to  its  execution  as  the 
sculptors  gave  to  their  colossal  statues.  The  physiog- 
nomy and  age  of  the  four  young  girls  are  well  charac- 
terized. The  girl  who  plucks  the  lotuses  is  an  ingenue: 
that  state  is  shown  by  her  carefully  plaited  hair  and  her 
pleated  skirt.  Theban  ladies  wore  long  skirts,  and  this 
is  only  turned  up  high  to  facilitate  walking  among 
the  reeds  without  soiling  its  edges.  The  two  musicians, 
on  the  contrary,  belong  to  the  lower  class ;  one 
has  only  a  belt  round  her  hips,  the  other  a  short  petti- 
coat, carelessly  fastened.  The  bearer  of  offerings  has 
the  tress  of  hair  falling  over  the  ear,  as  was  the  custom 
with  children,  and  her  belt  is  her  sole  garment.  She  is 
one  of  the  slender,  slim  young  girls  of  whom  many  may 
be  seen  among  the  fellahs  on  the  banks  of  the  Nile, 
and  her  nudity  does  not  prevent  her  from  belonging  to 
a  respectable  family  :  children  of  both  sexes  only  began 
to  wear  clothes  at  the  age  of  puberty.  Lastly,  the  slave^ 
with  his  thick  lips,  flattened  nose,  bestial  jaw,  low 
forehead,  sugar-loaf  head,  is  evidently  a  caricature  of  a 
foreign  prisoner;  the  brutish,  conscientious  way  in 
which  he  lifts  his  heavy  burden,  the  angular  promin- 
nences  of  the  body,  the  type  of  the  head,  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  different  parts,  remind  us  of  the  general 
aspect  of  some  terra-cotta  grotesques  that  come  from 
Asia  Minor. 

All  the  details  of  nature  grouped  round  and  framing 

191 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

the  principal  subject,  the  exact  form  of  the  flowers  and 
leaves,  the  species  of  the  birds,  are  very  accurate,  and 
sometimes  betray  wit.  Of  the  three  ducks  that  the  bearer 
of  offerings  has  tied  by  their  claws,  and  which  hang  over 
her  arm,  two  are  resigned  to  their  fate  and  go  swinging 
along,  the  neck  stretched  out,  the  eye  wide  open  ;  the  third 
lifts  its  head  up  and  flutters  its  wings.  The  two  water- 
fowl perched  on  the  lotuses  listen  at  ease,  the  beaks  on 
their  crops,  to  the  lute-player  who  is  passing  near  them ; 
experience  has  taught  them  that  they  need  not  disturb 
themselves  for  songs,  and  that  a  young  girl  is  only  to  be 
feared  if  she  is  armed.  In  the  bas-reliefs,  the  sight  of  a  bow 
or  a  boomerang  throws  them  into  confusion,  just  as  to-day 
that  of  a  gun  scatters  the  crows.  Tlie  Egyptians  knew 
the  habits  of  the  animals  who  lived  in  their  land,  and 
took  pleasure  in  minutely  observing  them.  Observation 
became  instinctive  with  them,  and  they  gave  a  striking 
air  of  reality  to  the  least  of  their  productions. 

The  bowl  of  the  ladles  is  generally  oval.  It  is  edged 
by  a  running  decoration  between  two  lines,  a  waving  line, 
or  a  more  or  less  accentuated  denticulation.  The  cavity 
made  in  the  slave's  burden  is  of  irregular  shape,  and  the 
thick  border  is  decorated  with  lightly  carved  flowers  and 
foliage.  It  was  a  perfume  box  rather  than  a  ladle,  for  the 
little  hole  in  the  lower  part,  near  the  prisoner's  shoulder, 
held  the  hinge  of  the  lid,  now  lost.  The  fifth  ladle  is  in 
the  shape  of  a  quadrangular  trough.  The  bottom,  set  in 
four  rectangular  mouldings,  is  covered  with  waving  lines 
simulating  water;  the  edges  represent  the  banks  of  the 
lake  and  are  covered  with  aquatic  scenes.  On  the  right, 
amid  the  flowers  and  lotus  buds,  a  little  personage  is 
catching  birds  with  a  net;  on  the  left,  another  is  fishing 
from  a  boat.    They  are  both  summarily  indicated,  but  are 

192 


To  face  p.  192. 


Perfume  Ladles,  XVIIIth  Dynasty 


not  the  less  full  of  life.  It  is  a  miniature  reproduction  on 
a  wooden  ladle  of  the  great  scenes  of  fishing  and  bird- 
catching  which  are  painted  in  the  tombs  and  the  temples. 

The  objects  are  in  wonderful  preservation.  A  lid  is 
lost,  a  lotus  branch  is  broken  behind  the  girl  who  is 
gathering  flowers,  one  of  the  feet  of  the  bearer  of  offerings 
is  missing.  Otherwise  they  are  intact,  and  might  have  just 
come  from  the  hands  of  the  craftsman.  The  wood  is  of 
a  very  fine  grain,  marvellously  adapted  to  the  needs  of 
the  chisel.  It  has  never  been  painted,  but  has  become 
darkened  with  time.  The  original  colour  must  have  been 
the  golden  yellow  seen  in  the  cracks  of  some  pieces  of 
thin  wood  found  in  the  tombs.  None  of  the  ladles  show 
any  signs  of  wear :  they  seem  to  have  been  deposited  new 
in  the  tomb  near  the  dead  person,  who  preserved  them 
new  until  our  day.  Like  the  rest  of  the  funerary  equip- 
ment, they  were  intended  for  use  in  the  other  world.  The 
lists  of  offerings  mention  antimony  powder  and  green 
paint  among  the  things  sent  to  the  double  on  festival  days  : 
the  perfume  ladles  and  boxes  were  as  necessary  in  the 
tomb  as  they  had  been  on  earth. 

I  do  not  think  that  any  survive  which  we  can  with  cer- 
tainty attribute  to  the  time  of  the  Pyramids:  but  the 
bas-reliefs  of  the  Memphian  tombs  show  us  the  joiners  at 
work,  and  do  not  allow  us  to  doubt  that  the  trade  in 
small  wooden  objects  was  very  flourishing  at  that  period. 
Under  the  great  Theban  Dynasties,  Egypt  exported  them 
by  thousands ;  imitated  in  Phoenicia,  or  even  transported 
directly  by  the  Phoenicians  to  the  Mediterranean  coasts, 
they  transmitted  the  forms  of  Oriental  art  to  the  West. 
It  is  probable  that  Theban  production — the  only  one 
known  to  us  by  dated  monuments  found  in  the  tombs — 
entirely  ceased,  or  at  least  became  almost  insignificant, 

193  N 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


when  the  greatness  of  Thebes  declined  from  the  tenth 
century  B.C.  They  were  still  manufactured  at  Memphis 
and  in  the  important  cities  of  the  Delta  until  the  Ptolemies 
and  the  Ceesars.  Recent  specimens  are  somewhat  rare,  and 
present  considerable  differences  from  those  of  Theban 
manufacture.  As  it  was  exactly  this  Memphian  art  that 
almost  exclusively  supplied  the  Phoenician  market  from 
the  time  of  Sheshonq,  it  is  vexing  that  examples  are  not 
more  abundant  :  as  we  do  not  possess  sufficient,  we  cannot 
accurately  judge  what  their  influence  was  on  the  arts  of 
the  Mediterranean. 

The  five  objects  I  have  been  discussing  come  from  the 
Salt  collection.  The  Theban  tombs  where  they  were 
found  were  exploited  and  emptied  at  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century  by  collectors  and  dealers  ;  it  is  difficult 
to  find  any  like  them  in  Egypt  now,  and  those  that  are 
discovered  are  very  inferior  to  these  in  delicacy  and 
quality. 


194 


PEEFUME  LADLE. 
The  Louvre. 


To  face  p.  1P4. 


XXII 


SOME  GREEN  BASALT  STATUETTES   OF  THE  SAITE 

PERIOD 

These  statuettes  were  cut  in  greenish  basalt  of  fine 
grain,  loved  by  the  artists  of  the  New  Empire  and  the 
Saite  Period  above  all  other  stones.  They  formed  part 
of  the  Salt  collection,  and  are  now  exhibited  in  the 
Louvre. 

The  first  represents  a  Pharaoh,  as  is  proved  by  the 
serpent  that  rises  above  his  forehead  and  the  hawk's  head 
that  terminates  the  dagger  passed  through  his  belt.  He 
is  standing,  and  walking  quickly,  the  head  erect  on  his 
shoulders,  and  slightly  bent  forward  in  the  attitude  of 
a  man  who  is  looking  attentively  at  the  point  towards 
which  he  is  going ;  the  arms  are  not  detached  from  the 
body,  and  hang  down  along  the  bust  and  the  thigh. 
The  composition  is  excellent,  highly  finished  in  spite  of 
the  hardness  of  the  material,  and  the  detail  is  rendered 
as  freely  as  on  the  colossi  of  the  Theban  Period. 

The  face  has  a  particular  character  which  struck 
Egyptologists  long  since ;  it  is  short,  wide  at  the  height 
of  the  eyes,  rounded  at  the  bottom.  The  eye  is  long, 
prominent,  surmounted  by  strong  curved  eyebrows, 
marked  where  they  join  on  the  forehead  by  two  deep 
vertical  furrows.    The  nose  is  aquiline,  short,  thick  at  the 

195 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


end,  flanked  by  two  nostrils  the  outside  walls  of  which 
seem  to  be  somewhat  thin.  The  mouth  is  widely  opened 
and  protrudes ;  full  lips,  short  chin  receding  a  little  under 
the  shadow  of  the  lips.  On  his  return  from  his  journey 
in  Egypt,  M.  de  Rouge  was  struck  by  the  resemblance  of 
this  statuette,  till  then  lying  forgotten  in  the  corner  of 
a  cupboard,  with  the  portraits  of  the  Shepherd  Kings 
discovered  at  San  by  Mariette.  Deveria  cleverly  re- 
produced it  in  two  plates  in  the  Revue  arclieologique,^ 
He  asserted  what  M.  de  Rouge  had  admitted  as  a  mere 
hypothesis :  that  it  was  the  portrait  of  a  Shepherd  King, 
and  that  it  belonged  to  the  disturbed  period  which 
immediately  preceded  the  XVII Ith  Dynasty.  I  must 
confess  that  these  conclusions  do  not  appear  to  me  to 
be  sound.  The  long  list  of  Pharaohs  includes  many 
sovereigns  whose  faces  present  characteristics  very 
different  from  those  usually  attributed  to  the  Egyptian 
race,  and  yet  who,  all  the  same,  were  Egyptians 
born  and  bred.  Without  entering  into  the  discussion,  I 
will  content  myself  with  saying  that  several  of  those 
who  reigned  at  periods  relatively  late,  Taharqa  (XXVth 
Dynasty)  or  Hakori  (XXIXth  Dynasty)  for  example, 
bear  a  singular  likeness  to  the  sovereign  of  our  statuette 
in  the  structure  and  expression  of  the  face.  I  cannot  be 
certain  here  that  it  is  a  question  of  one  of  them,  but 
the  general  composition  reminds  me  of  the  style  of  the 
Saite  Period  more  than  of  that  of  the  Theban.  Without 
asserting  anything,  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  our 
Pharaoh  lived  in  the  last  centuries  of  Egyptian  in- 
dependence. 

The  second  fragment  is  evidently  Saite ;  the  somewhat 
harsh  precision  of  the  modelling,  the  heaviness  of  the 

*  Revue  arclieologique^  April,  1861,  vol.  iii.,  2nd  series. 

196 


Green  Basalt  Statuettes 


head-dress,  the  roundness  of  shoulders  and  chest, 
sufficiently  prove  it.  It  is  broken  too  high  up  for  us  to 
determine  if  it  belonged  to  a  standing  statue  like  the 
Pharaoh,  or  a  crouching  figure  like  the  third  monument. 
It  is  a  perfect  type  of  the  middle-class  Egyptian,  developed 
in  width  rather  than  in  height. 

The  shoulders  are  soft  and  flabby;  the  smiling  insigni- 
ficance of  the  features,  the  sinking  down  of  the  trunk  on 
the  hips  and  the  head  on  the  shoulders,  are  just  what  we 
should  expect  in  one  of  the  scribes  who  led  sedentary 
lives  in  offices,  amid  piles  of  documents,  of  whom  some 
bas-reliefs  exaggerate  the  obesity  with  an  evident  intention 
of  caricature.  The  inscription  engraved  on  the  base  tells 
us  that  he  was  named  Ai,  son  of  Hapi,  and  that  besides 
his  sacerdotal  functions  he  possessed  the  dignity  of  director 
of  the  two  store-houses  of  the  money.  The  Turin  papyrus 
informs  us  of  the  nature  of  his  office.  The  financial  system 
of  Egypt  rested  on  an  entirely  different  principle  from  ours : 
coins  not  being  yet  invented,  or  only  lately  come  into 
use  at  the  Saite  Period,  the  payment  of  taxes  and  of 
the  officials,  the  transactions  of  the  State  with  private 
individuals,  or  of  private  individuals  with  each  other,  were 
valued  and  settled  in  kind.  Every  Egyptian  owed  the 
Treasury,  according  to  his  profession  and  his  fortune,  so 
many  fish  if  he  was  a  fisherman,  so  many  bushels  of  grain 
or  head  of  cattle  if  he  was  an  agriculturist ;  the  whole  was 
duly  received,  registered,  and  stored  by  scribes  who,  in 
their  turn,  put  aside  for  the  Pharaoh  what  would  keep, 
and  used  what  was  perishable  for  the  daily  disbursements. 
Silver  and  gold  were  articles  of  exchange  in  the  same  way 
as  stuffs  or  oxen  ;  Pharaoh  brought  them  back  in  quantities 
from  his  expeditions  abroad,  and  received  them  from  his 
subjects  as  the  equivalent  of  their  share  of  the  tax.  Gold 

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and  silver  circulated  in  powder,  in  sachets  that  contained 
a  definite  weight,  in  thin  rings,  in  the  form  of  couchant 
oxen,  of  half-oxen,  of  ox  or  gazelle  heads,  of  jars  full  or 
empty,  in  curious  shapes  that  generally  were  of  no  use 
in  daily  life,  and  which  consequently  were  only,  in  spite 
of  their  artistic  value,  a  sort  of  metallic  reserve  for  the 
rich.  The  two  store-houses  or  the  double  house  of  the 
money  formed  the  treasury  in  which  Pharaoh  stored 
the  quantities  of  gold  and  silver  that  belonged  to  him: 
taking  into  account  the  value  attached  to  these  metals, 
the  directors  of  these  establishments  must  have  occupied 
a  fairly  high  rank  in  the  Egyptian  hierarchy. 

But  for  all  that,  we  must  not  take  the  manuscript 
spread  over  Ai's  knees  and  that  he  is  attentively  reading 
for  an  account-book,  or  a  document  relating  to  his 
business.  The  portion  of  the  scroll  that  he  holds  in  his 
right  hand,  placed  flat  on  his  knees,  is  divided  into  vertical 
columns,  which,  cut  by  horizontal  lines,  presents  a  sort  of 
chequered  surface,  the  squares  of  which  are  not  all  of  the 
same  size.  Each  of  the  larger  ones  contains  the  name  of 
an  object,  and  each  of  the  smaller  a  number.  It  is  the 
list  of  the  gifts  composing  the  banquet  offered  to  the  dead 
person  on  the  day  of  burial  and  during  the  funeral  cere- 
monies. In  the  tombs  both  of  the  Ancient  and  the  New 
Empire  it  is  highly  developed,  and  comprises  the  most 
varied  materials:  clear  or  coloured  waters,  beers  of  different 
kinds,  wines  of  four  vintages,  seven  or  nine  of  the  choice 
pieces  of  the  victim,  cakes  of  all  sorts,  essences,  cosmetics, 
stuffs.  On  the  scroll  of  our  scribe  where  the  space  was 
restricted  the  list  is  shortened,  and  we  only  find  the  actual 
necessities :  water,  beer,  some  meat,  a  little  perfume. 
It  is  to  that  of  the  tombs  what  the  usual  dinner  of  a 
middle-class    family  is    to  the   ceremonial    banquet  of 

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a  noble ;  nevertheless,  our  scribe  reads  it  with  evident 
satisfaction :  it  is  the  menu  of  his  meals  for  eternity,  and, 
however  scanty  others  may  deem  it,  he  probably  con- 
siders it  more  pleasurable  than  that  of  his  terrestrial 
dinners.  We  have  here  the  natural  development  of  the 
ideas  that  the  Egyptians  had  of  the  other  world.  From 
the  moment  that  the  double  was  to  feed  materially,  they 
sought  to  assure  it  the  food  of  which  it  had  need.  The 
formulas  of  the  stelas  which  mention  bread,  wine,  meat, 
deciphered  by  the  first  comer,  secured  the  provisioning 
of  the  double  ;  all  that  had  been  desired  for  him  in 
reciting  it  would  be  assured  him  in  the  other  world  by 
virtue  of  the  magic  words.  For  lack  of  a  passer-by  to 
accomplish  this  pious  duty,  it  occurred  to  them  to  place 
statues  in  the  tomb  which  seemed  to  repeat  for  ever  a 
written  list  held  on  their  knees ;  this  simulation  of  a  per- 
petual reading  was  more  than  sufficient  to  nourish  for  ever 
the  simulacrum  of  a  man.  Here,  it  is  the  defunct  himself 
who  renders  himself  this  good  office  ;  elsewhere  it  is  a 
friend,  a  scribe,  a  favourite  servant. 

The  study  of  these  three  little  monuments  brings  out 
very  happily  one  of  the  qualities  of  Egyptian  art :  the  skill 
with  which  the  least  of  artists,  in  reproducing  in  a  some- 
times realistic  manner  the  portrait  of  individuals,  under- 
stood how  to  seize  the  physiognomy  and  bearing  character- 
istic of  their  craft  or  of  their  social  rank.  Compare  the 
submissive  and  sheepish  face  of  the  crouching  scribe  with 
the  bold  carriage  and  imperious  head  of  the  Pharaoh :  the 
contrast  is  striking.  With  the  scribe,  all  the  muscles  are 
relaxed  ;  the  whole  body  is  bent,  as  with  a  man  accustomed 
to  obey  and  resigned  to  endure  everything  from  his 
superiors.  With  the  Pharaoh,  the  modelling  is  firm,  the 
figure  upright,  the  mien  haughty;  we  feel  that  here  is 

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a  person  accustomed  from  childhood  to  walk  upright  in 
the  midst  of  bowed  backs.  It  is  unfortunate  that  the 
legend  has  disappeared  with  the  lower  part  of  the  second 
statuette;  comparing  it  with  several  other  monuments  in 
the  Louvre,  it  reminds  me  of  several  priests  of  the  Saite 
Period.  The  hardness  in  the  eye  and  the  corners  of  the 
lips  is  the  same,  the  same  furrow  surrounds  the  nostril 
and  the  mouth,  the  outer  walls  of  the  nose  are  compressed 
in  a  similar  fashion ;  in  spite  of  the  loss  of  the  name  and 
titles,  I  am  tempted  to  think  that  the  individual  who 
bears  on  his  face  in  so  high  a  degree  the  peculiarities  of 
the  Egyptian  priest  belonged  to  the  sacerdotal  caste. 


200 


XXIII 


A  FIND  OF  SAITE  JEWELS  AT  SAQQARAH  * 

As  soon  as  I  returned  to  my  old  post,  I  resumed  the 
excavations  of  the  pyramids  at  the  point  where  I  had  left 
them  in  1886.  I  had  then  made  a  systematic  search  of 
the  entrance  into  the  funerary  vaults :  it  was  now 
necessary  to  seek  out  the  exterior  chapels,  the  caves,  the 
secondary  pyramids  or  the  mastabas,  which,  shut  in  by 
a  walled  enclosure,  completed  the  burial-place.  At  the 
end  of  November,  1899,  I  placed  workmen  round  Ounas, 
and  as  I  found  it  impossible  to  direct  the  operations 
myself  with  the  requisite  care,  I  entrusted  the  sur- 
veillance of  them  to  M.  Alexandre  Barsanti,  the  curator- 
restorer  of  the  Museum,  with  detailed  instructions.  The 
campaign  then  begun  was  only  ended  in  the  last  days  of 
May,  1900,  and  the  account  of  it  will  be  published 
elsewhere.  I  now  wish  to  draw  the  attention  of 
amateurs  and  scholars  to  the  discovery  of  a  mass  of 
Saite  jewels. 

The  progress  of  the  clearing  away  revealed  the 
existence  of  a  series  of  intact  tombs  at  the  south  of 
the  pyramid.  The  last  of  those  that  had  been  opened 
belonged  to  a  very  high  personage  named  Zannehibou, 

*  Printed  in  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne,  1900,  vol. 
viii.,  p.  353. 

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in  his  lifetime  commandant  of  the  king's  boats.  The 
mummy,  a  block  of  shining  bitumen,  was  at  once  recognised 
as  a  very  rich  one.  At  the  height  of  the  face  it  had 
a  large  gold  mask  which  fitted  on  the  front  part  of 
the  head  like  the  cartonnage  case  usual  with  mummies 
of  the  second  Saite  Period.  It  had  a  broad  necklace 
round  its  neck  of  beads  of  gold  and  of  green  felspar  or  of 
lapis  lazuli  mounted  with  gold  thread,  and  fastened  to  it 
were  numerous  amulets,  also  of  gold.  Below  the  neck- 
lace, on  the  chest,  an  image  of  the  goddess  Nouit,  in 
gold,  spread  its  wings.  A  network  of  gold  and  felspar 
hung  down  to  the  hip,  and  from  the  image  of  the  Nouit 
to  the  ankles  might  be  read,  on  a  long  band  of  gold-leaf, 
the  usual  inscriptions  in  relief:  the  name  of  the  dead 
man,  his  filiation,  with  short  formulas  of  prayer.  Two 
gold  figures  of  Isis  and  Nephthys  were  sewn  on  the 
chest,  two  leaves  of  gold  cut  as  sandals  were  fitted  to 
the  soles  of  the  feet ;  a  silver  plaque  with  a  line 
engraving  of  a  mystic  eye  for  the  incision  whence  the 
entrails  had  been  extracted,  gold  cases  for  the  twenty 
fingers  and  toes,  completed  this  magnificent  decoration. 
Everything  that  with  the  lower  classes  of  the  same 
period  would  have  been  in  cardboard,  or  gilded  paste,  or 
enamelled  clay,  was  pure  gold  and  fine  stones  with 
Zannehibou.  The  find,  estimated  by  weight  alone,  would 
be  valuable,  but  what  gave  it  inestimable  worth  was  the 
delicate  and  artistic  workmanship  of  the  greater  number 
of  the  objects.  A  few  of  them,  like  the  sandals  and  the 
finger-cases,  are  only  worth  the  raw  metal;  the  rest 
are  the  work  of  veritable  artists.  The  inscriptions  of 
the  legs,  the  winged  Nouit,  the  Isis  and  the  Nephthys,  the 
mask,^^are  stamped,  and  although  the  mask  and 
the  two  goddesses  were  miserably  crushed   by  the  lid 

202 


NECKLACE  AMULET. 


VULTURE  AMULET. 


EAm'S  head.  gold  hawk.  hawk  WITH  HAWK  WITH 

HUMAN  HEAD.  RAm'S  HEAD. 


To  facelp.  202. 


A  Find  of  Saite  Jewels  at  Saqqarah 


when  the  sarcophagus  was  closed,  the  mould  of  hard 
stone  which  was  used  to  fix  them  was  so  delicately 
cut  that  the  best-preserved  pieces,  the  winged  Nouit, 
for  instance,  may  be  quoted  as  the  highest  degree  of 
perfection  that  could  be  attained  by  that  process.  The 
amulet  in  shape  of  a  necklace  is  only  a  leaf  cut  with 
the  chisel,  on  which  a  chapter  of  the  "  Book  of  the 
Dead  "  is  engraved  with  the  graving  needle.  The  vulture 
amulet  is  a  small,  thin  plaque,  on  one  side  of  which 
the  stamped  figure  of  a  vulture  with  spread  wings  has 
been  stuck,  while  on  the  other  the  chapter  of  the  "  Book 
of  the  Dead"  has  been  engraved,  as  with  the  necklace. 
It  is  all  of  good  workmanship,  but  in  the  amulets  hanging 
on  the  real  necklace  of  the  mummy  the  goldsmith  has 
surpassed  himself. 

They  are  extraordinarily  small,  and  in  order  to  show 
the  detail  I  have  had  the  illustrations  made  twice  the 
actual  size,  a  proceeding  that  weakens  the  contours  and 
the  modelling.  To  realize  their  beauty  it  is  necessary 
to  have  held  them  in  the  hand.  The  palm-tree,  which 
has  lost  some  leaves,  is  a  unique  object,  more  curious 
than  elegant,  but  the  mystic  boat  which  is  beside  it, 
unique  also  so  far,  is  a  prodigy  of  delicate  chiselling. 
It  is  the  boat  of  the  god  Sokaris,  a  boat  of  most 
archaic  construction,  and  which  was  already  used  for  the 
accomplishment  of  the  sacred  rites  under  the  Thinite 
Dynasty.  The  belly  is  broad  and  round,  the  stern 
rather  heavy,  but  the  bows  very  light  and  much 
decorated.  It  rests  on  a  sort  of  side-ladder  of  beams 
and  ropes,  which  is  itself  built  on  to  a  sledge  :  it  was 
pulled  along  in  the  public  ceremonies  by  means  of  a 
rope  put  through  a  hole  made  in  the  curved  front  of 
the  sledge.    The  decoration  and  the  equipage  are  most 

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curious.  On  the  bow  is  a  gazelle's  head  with  straight 
horns  turned  to  the  interior,  and  along  the  prow  a  row  of 
divergent  plates  of  thin  metal,  the  use  of  which  is  not  very- 
clear  :  it  is  as  if  the  carcase  of  the  gazelle  was  opened 
and  showed  the  ribs  fixed  on  the  spine.  At  the  back,  to 
terminate  the  poop,  there  is  a  ram's  head  with  curved 
horns.  In  the  middle,  on  an  oblong  rectangular  pedestal, 
a  hawk  proudly  perches ;  behind  him  are  the  four  oar- 
rudders,  two  on  each  side ;  in  front  of  him  six  little 
hawks  ascend  in  procession,  two  by  two,  towards  the 
gazelle's  head,  led  by  a  Nile  fish  placed  edgeways  on  its 
ventral  fin.  For  the  moment  I  will  not  attempt  to 
explain  the  meaning  of  these  emblems,  but  what  we  can 
never  grow  tired  of  admiring  is  the  cleverness  with 
which  the  craftsman  has  grouped  these  widely  differing 
elements  into  an  harmonious  whole,  and  especially  the 
extraordinary  skill  with  which  he  worked  his  metal.  His 
gazelle's  head,  a  mere  fraction  of  an  inch  in  size,  is  of  as 
proud  a  bearing  as  if  it  were  of  natural  size :  everything 
is  exact,  intelligent;  the  curve  of  the  forehead,  the 
flattening  of  the  snout,  the  expression  of  the  face,  even 
to  the  natural  pout  of  the  creature.  Each  of  the  six 
hawks  preserves  its  individual  physiognomy,  and  the  fish 
itself,  reduced  in  size  as  it  is,  has  the  exact  shape  of  the 
big  Nile  perch,  and  not  that  of  any  sort  of  fish. 

Similar  qualities  are  to  be  seen  in  the  neighbouring 
pieces,  in  the  ram's  head,  the  ordinary  hawk,  the  hawk 
with  a  human  head,  and  that  with  a  ram's  head,  and  in 
the  vulture.  The  seated  I  sis  who  nurses  her  child  on 
her  lap  and  the  crouching  Neith  have  their  usual  charac- 
teristics of  resignation  and  gentleness,  and  at  the  same 
time  the  simplicity  of  line  that  lends  so  dignified  an  air 
to  the   smallest    Egyptian    figures.     It    has   all  been 

204 


THE  SOUL  (back  VIEW). 


To  face  p.  204. 


A  Find  of  Saite  Jewels  at  Saqqarah 


chiselled  out  of  the  ingot  itself,  and  the  detail  cut  with 
so  minute  a  point  that  we  ask  where  the  artisan  could 
have  obtained  it. 

Tiny  lions  addorsed  or  couchant,  tiny  mystic  eyes, 
tiny  monkeys  worshipping  the  emblem  of  Osiris,  tiny 
vultures,  and  tiny  haw^ks  extending  their  wings,  each 
piece  claims  careful  examination,  and  would  by  itself 
alone  bring  joy  to  the  heart  of  a  collector.  The  master- 
piece of  the  series  is,  however,  the  soid,  the  hawk  with 
a  human  head,  enamelled  body  and  wings,  of  which  both 
back  and  front  views  are  here  reproduced.  The  back 
follows  the  usual  manner,  small  rods  of  bent  gold,  curved, 
soldered  on  to  a  gold  plaque  and  encrusted  with  thin 
plates  of  felspar  to  simulate  feathers  ;  but  on  the  other  side, 
the  body,  wings,  and  claws  are  modelled  with  the  new 
purpose  of  reproducing  the  natural  form  of  the  bird. 
The  little  human  head  is  a  marvel  of  somewhat  weak 
gracefulness :  the  eyes  are  well  open,  the  mouth  is  smil- 
ing, the  nostrils  actually  palpitate,  the  ear  is  cut  out  and 
is  hollowed  broad  and  high  as  is  customary,  and  there 
is  nothing,  even  to  the  wrinkles  of  the  neck  and  the 
roundness  of  a  double  chin,  that  does  not  clearly  stand  out 
under  the  reflection  of  the  gold.  Here  again,  it  is  all 
chiselled  by  a  master-hand,  with  a  sureness  I  have  only 
found  in  the  hawk  with  a  ram's  head  in  the  Louvre,"^  with 
which  this  soul  of  Gizeli  may  be  compared. 

The  circumstances  of  the  discovery  would  not  have 
informed  us  of  the  date,  if  the  style  of  the  jewels  had 
not  done  so.  It  is  Saite  art  with  its  lightness,  suppleness, 
somewhat  arch  charm,  its  almost  too  high  relief.  A 
tendency  is  felt  in  the  direction  of  the  exaggerated 
roundness  of  the  Ptolemies,  and,  in  fact,  a  note  furnished 

*  See  p.  150. 
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by  M.  Chassinat  permits  us  to  fix  the  time  at  which 
Zannehibou  lived.  He  belonged  to  the  family  of  a 
certain  Psammetichus,  whose  tomb  is  near  his,  which  an 
inscription  in  the  Louvre  found  by  Mariette  in  the 
Serapeum  places  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century, 
during  the  last  years  of  the  reign  of  Darius  I.  If,  as  is 
likely,  he  was  the  grandson  of  that  Psammetichus,  he 
died  at  the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  just  when  the 
Saite  kings  were  resuming  their  superiority  over  the 
Persians,  at  most,  a  hundred  years  before  the  Macedonian 
conquest.  The  goldsmiths  who  fashioned  his  ornaments 
had  probably  seen  Greek  jewels,  and  had  perhaps  already 
felt  Hellenic  influence :  in  that  way  the  almost  Ptolemaic 
characteristics  of  the  collection  are  explained.  We  know 
that  Saite  jewels  are  very  rare ;  the  Louvre  alone  possesses 
any  that  are  out  of  the  ordinary  run:  the  two  necklace 
fastenings  in  form  of  a  ship  bought  by  M.  G.  Benedite 
a  few  years  ago.  The  mummy  of  Zannehibou  has  filled  up 
the  lacuna  in  the  Gizeh  series,  and  thanks  to  it,  we  now 
know  that  the  goldsmith's  art  yielded  in  nothing  to  the 
other  arts  at  the  time  of  the  last  Egyptian  renaissance. 
Let  us  add  that  these  jewels,  although  found  on  a  mummy 
and  made  for  it,  are  not,  as  is  too  often  the  case,  jewels 
of  the  dead,  pleasing  in  colour  and  design,  but  too  weakly 
mounted  to  stand  the  wear  and  tear  if  worn  by  a  living 
person.  Like  the  jewels  of  Ramses  II  in  the  Louvre,^ 
like  those  of  Queen  Ahhotpou  at  Gizeh,  they  are  real 
jewels,  identical  at  all  points,  except  perhaps  in  the  choice 
of  subjects,  with  the  jewels  worn  every  day. 

Such  is  the  find  that  made  a  happy  termination  to 
our  Saqqarah  campaign.  All  the  pieces  were  covered  with 
bitumen,  and  it  is  no  slight  merit  to  M.  Barsanti  that 

*  See  Chapter  XVI.,  p.  145. 
206 


A  Find  of  Saite  Jewels  at  Saqqarah 

he  should  have  discovered  them  and  separated  them  one 
after  the  other.  Several  pits,  equally  untouched,  await 
us  at  the  same  spot  under  fifteen  or  eighteen  yards 
of  sand,  and  I  have  a  good  hope  that  next  year's  ex- 
cavations may  have  as  glad  surprises  for  us  as  those  of 
this  year. 


207 


XXIV 


A  BRONZE  EGYPTIAN  CAT  BELONGING  TO 
M.  BARRERE* 

This  fine  bronze  eat  was  purchased  at  Cairo  in  1884  by 
M.  Barrere,  then  agent  and  consul-general  of  France  in 
Egypt.  It  belongs  to  the  innumerable  family  of  cats 
which  suddenly  came  forth  from  the  ruins  of  Tell  Bastah 
in  1878,  and  were,  in  a  few  years,  scattered  over  the 
whole  world.  It  measures  1  foot  4*^  inches  in  height, 
and  if  not  the  largest  found  at  that  time,  it  is  at  least 
bigger  than  the  average.  But  its  size  is  not  its  chief 
merit :  the  Egyptians,  who  were  the  first  to  tame  the  cat, 
studied  it  so  closely  that  they  expressed  its  characteristics 
with  extraordinary  excellence.  M.  Barrere's  cat  is  firmly 
seated  on  her  hind-quarters,  looking  straight  in  front  of 
her,  in  the  satisfied  attitude  of  an  animal  which  has  done 
its  duty  and  has  nothing  to  reproach  itself  with.  The 
wooden  pedestal  to  which  it  was  attached  is  wanting, 
but  the  metal  tenon  which  fastened  it  is  still  in  its  place, 
and  the  body  is  in  a  perfect  state  of  preservation.  It 
was  moulded  in  one  piece  round  a  core  of  sand  that  has 

*  Published  in  the  Revue  de  VArt  ancien  et  moderne^  1902,  vol.  xi., 
p.  377. 

208 


BRONZE  CAT  OF  THE  SAITE  PERIOD. 
Barrere  Collection. 


To  face  p.  208. 


A  Bronze  Egyptian  Cat 


disappeared,  then  touched  up  with  the  burin  and  the  file, 
and  then  poHshed ;  it  has  not  suffered  from  its  long 
sojourn  in  the  earth,  and  we  can  judge  its  qualities  or 
its  defects  as  clearly  as  if  it  had  been  made  yesterday.  It 
is  a  fine  piece,  of  very  sure  design  and  careful  execution. 
The  artist  was  not  afraid  to  multiply  the  details,  and  he 
has  simplified  the  surfaces  ;  but  the  force  of  the  line,  the 
robust  and  vigorous  character  of  the  execution,  make  his 
work  a  piece  of  the  first  rank.  It  is  wonderful  to  note 
the  intelligent  skill  with  which  he  has  expressed  the 
characteristics  and  physiognomy  of  the  race.  The  haunch 
is  broad  and  round,  the  back  supple,  the  neck  slender, 
the  head  delicate,  the  ear  straight ;  it  is  the  Egyptian 
cat  in  all  its  elegance,  as  we  can  still  see  it  among 
the  fellahs,  for  crossing  with  foreign  species  has  not 
altered  it. 

She  is  Bastit,  a  goddess  of  good  family,  the  worship 
of  whom  flourished  especially  in  the  east  of  the  delta, 
and  she  is  very  often  drawn  or  named  on  the  monuments, 
although  they  do  not  tell  us  enough  of  her  myths  or 
her  origin.  She  was  allied  or  related  to  the  Sun,  and 
was  now  said  to  be  his  sister  or  wife,  now  his  daughter. 
She  sometimes  filled  a  beneficent  and  gracious  role,  pro- 
tecting men  against  contagious  diseases  or  evil  spirits, 
keeping  them  off  by  the  music  of  her  sistrum :  she  had 
also  her  hours  of  treacherous  perversity,  during  which  she 
played  with  her  victim  as  with  a  mouse,  before  finishing 
him  off  with  a  blow  of  her  claws.  She  dwelt  by 
preference  in  the  city  that  bore  her  name,  Poubastit,  the 
Bubastis  of  classical  writers.  Her  temple,  at  which 
Cheops  and  Chephren  had  worked  while  they  were 
building  their  pyramids,  was  rebuilt  by  the  Pharaohs  of 
the  XXIInd  Dynasty,  enlarged  by  those  of  the  XXVI  th  ; 

209  O 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 

when  Herodotus  visited  it  in  the  middle  of  the  fifth 
century  B.C.,  he  considered  it  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able he  had  seen  in  the  parts  of  Egypt  through  which 
he  had  travelled.  It  stood  in  the  centre  of  the  city, 
at  the  end  of  the  market-place.  It  was  bordered  by 
two  canals,  each  100  feet  wide  and  shaded  by  trees  ;  they 
flowed  without  joining,  one  on  the  right,  the  other  on 
the  left  of  the  building,  almost  making  it  an  artificial 
island.  Travellers  before  entering  it  looked  over  the 
enclosure,  even  into  the  exterior  court-yards,  for  Bubastis 
had  undergone  the  fate  of  many  of  the  large  cities  of 
Egypt ;  in  the  course  of  ages  the  ground  became  raised 
in  such  a  way  that  the  foundations  of  recent  houses 
were  on  a  higher  level  than  those  of  the  temple.  A  big 
wall,  decorated  with  pictures  like  the  outer  wall  of  the 
temple  of  Edfou,  enclosed  the  temenos.  The  fetes  of 
Bastit  attracted  pilgrims  from  all  parts  of  Egypt,  as  at 
the  present  day  those  of  Sidi  Ahmed  el-Bedaoui  draw 
people  to  the  modern  fair  of  Tantah.  The  people  of 
each  village  crowded  into  large  boats  to  get  there,  men 
and  women  pell-mell,  with  the  fixed  intention  of  en- 
joying themselves  on  the  journey,  a  thing  they  never 
failed  to  do.  They  accompanied  the  slow  progress  of 
navigation  with  endless  songs,  love  songs  rather  than 
sacred  hymns,  and  there  were  always  to  be  found  among 
them  flute  players  and  castanet  players  to  support  or 
keep  time  to  the  voices.  Whenever  they  passed  by  a  town, 
they  approached  the  bank  as  near  as  they  could  without 
landing,  and  then,  while  the  orchestra  redoubled  its  noise, 
the  passengers  threw  volleys  of  insults  and  coarse  remarks 
at  the  women  standing  on  the  bank ;  they  retorted,  and 
when  they  had  exhausted  words,  they  pulled  up  their 
petticoats  and    behaved    indecently  by  way  of  reply. 

210 


A  Bronze  Egyptian  Cat 


Herodotus  was  told  that  700,000  persons,  equal  numbers 
of  men  and  women,  not  reckoning  little  children,  went 
thus  every  year  to  Bubastis.  Entry  into  the  temple 
did  not  calm  them,  far  from  it.  They  sacrificed  a  great 
number  of  victims  with  a  sincere  and  joyous  piety ;  then 
they  drank  deeply  from  morning  to  evening,  and  from  even- 
ing to  morning,  as  long  as  the  festival  lasted  :  more  wine 
was  consumed  in  a  few  days  than  in  all  the  rest  of  the 
year  put  together. 

The  greater  number  of  the  pilgrims,  before  returning 
home,  left  a  souvenir  of  their  visit  at  the  feet  of  Bastit. 
It  was  a  votive  stele  with   a  fine  inscription,  and  a 
picture  showing  the  donor  worshipping  his  goddess ;  or  a 
statuette  in  blue  or  green  pottery,   or  if   they  were 
wealthy,  in  bronze,  silver,  or  sometimes  gold  :  the  goddess 
would  be  standing,   seated,  crouching  with  a  woman's 
body  and  a  cat's  head,  a  sistrum  or  an  aggis  in  her  hand. 
During  the  Greek  period  the  figures  were  in  bronze  or 
in  painted  and  gilded  wood  surmounted  by  a  cat's  head 
in    bronze.     Many    were    life-size    and   modelled  with 
elaborate  art ;  they  had  eyes  of  enamel,  a  gilded  necklace 
round  the  neck,  earrings,  and  amulets  on  the  forehead. 
It  sometimes  happened  that  when  a  cat  he  particularly 
venerated  died  in  his  house,  the  pilgrim  embalmed  it 
according  to  the  rites  :  he  took  the  mummy  with  him,  and, 
arrived  at  Bubastis,  shut  it  up  in  one  of  the  figures  he 
offered.    These  various  objects,  at  first  placed  anywhere 
in  the  temple,  would  quickly  have  filled  it,  if  some  remedy 
had  not  been  found.    They  were  piled  up  provisionally 
at  the  end  of  one  of  the  secondary  chambers,  then  thrown 
outside,  and  there  encountered  diverse  fortunes.    I  do  not 
think  I  am  calumniating  the  Egyptian  priests  in  saying 
that  it  must  have  been  a  great  grief  to  them  to  part  with  so 

211 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


many  precious  gifts  without  trying  to  derive  some  honest 
profit  from  them.  The  gold  and  silver  figures  did  not 
endure  ;  they  quickly  went  into  the  melting-pot,  and  few 
emerge  from  the  ruins,  but  the  bronze  and  copper  were  so 
abundant  that  there  would  have  been  little  to  gain  in  melting 
down  the  cats.  So  they  sorted  out  the  heap  of  bronzes, 
and  while  they  kept  some,  the  finest,  doubtless,  or  those 
that  bore  inscriptions,  they  sold  the  rest  to  new  generations 
of  pilgrims,  who,  in  their  turn,  offered  them  in  due  form. 
However  frequently  this  was  done,  the  influx  was  consider- 
able, and  they  were  forced  to  rid  themselves  quickly  of 
the  pieces  that  had  at  first  been  kept  in  reserve.  They 
shut  them  up  in  cellars,  or  in  pits  dug  expressly  for  them, 
veritable  favissce  similar  to  those  of  classical  times  ;  ^  they 
accumulated  by  thousands,  large  and  small,  in  wood  and  in 
bronze,  some  intact  and  fresh  as  when  just  made,  others 
already  out  of  shape,  rotten,  oxidized  and  of  no  value. 
The  places  of  concealment  were  soon  forgotten,  and  the 
stuff  in  them  reposed  there  beyond  the  reach  of  men 
until  the  day  when  the  chances  of  excavation  brought 
it  to  light. 

One  of  them  restored  M.  Barrere's  cat.  It  is  not 
possible  to  determine  the  period  at  which  it  was  buried : 
the  persons  who  found  it  were  seekers  of  nitreous  manure, 
or  dealers  in  antiquities  who  took  good  care  not  to  divulge 
the  circumstances  and  the  site  of  their  discovery.  But 
judging  from  the  roundness  of  certain  forms  and  the 
aspect  of  the  bronze,  we  recognize  the  style  of  the  second 
Saite  Period,  and  the  piece  is  to  be  attributed  either  to 
the  Nectanebos,  or  the  first  Ptolemies,  in  a  general  way 
to  the  fourth  century  B.C.  or  the  beginning  of  the  third 
century  B.C.    It  was  the  time  when  the  worship  of  Bastit 

See  Chapter  X. 
212 


A  Bronze  Egyptian  Cat 

and  her  subordinate  forms,  Pakhit,  Mait,  was  most 
popular,  the  period  when,  near  Speos-Artemidos,  the  most 
extensive  cemetery  of  cats  in  Egypt  was  estabUshed.  The 
execution  is  pure  Egyptian,  and  in  no  way  betrays  any 
Greek  influence. 


213 


XXV 


A  FIND  OF  CATS  IN  EGYPT 

It  was  announced  in  the  English  newspapers,  and  the 
French  followed  suit,  that  a  ship  had  recently  reached 
London  and  disembarked  180,000  mummies  of  Egyptian 
cats.  For  a  long  time  manufacturers  of  different  nation- 
alities have  been  accustomed  to  seek  out  the  burying 
grounds  of  animals  throughout  Egypt,  and  to  export  the 
bones  to  Europe,  where  they  are  used  as  manure.  A  few 
years  ago  a  necropolis  full  of  monkeys  was  sent  to  Germany 
to  manure  beet-root  fields.  It  seems  that  the  cats  of  this 
year  were  discovered  near  Beni- Hassan ;  they  were  piled 
up  at  hazard  in  a  sort  of  cavern,  into  which  a  fellah  in 
search  of  antiquities  was  the  first  to  penetrate.  In  fact, 
at  some  distance  to  the  south  of  the  hypogeums  of  Beni- 
Hassan,  in  the  place  called  by  geographers  Speos-Arte- 
midos,  is  a  chapel  hollowed  out  in  the  rock,  and  conse- 
crated by  the  kings  of  the  XVIIIth  and  XlXth  Dynasties 
to  a  local  goddess,  a  woman's  body  with  a  cat's  or  lion's 
head,  called  Pakhit.  The  depot  recently  exploited  was 
found  there,  and  the  cats  which  reposed  in  it  must  have 
lived  in  the  vicinity,  under  the  protection  of  their  cousin, 
the  goddess.  Cemeteries  of  the  same  kind  existed 
wherever  a  divinity  of  a  feline  type  was  worshipped, 

Published  in  La  Nature^  1890,  vol.  xxxv.,  pp.  273-4. 
214 


To  face  p.  -214- 


A  Find  of  Cats  in  Egypt 

lion,  tiger,  or  cat.  The  most  celebrated  was  at  Bubastis, 
in  the  delta,  where  the  seekers  of  antiquities  cleared 
away  the  rubbish  about  thirty-seven  years  ago."^'  The 
mummies  of  cats  were  buried  there  in  favissce,  deep  pits, 
some  merely  wrapped  in  swathings,  others  enclosed  in 
little  coffins  reproducing  the  image  of  the  animal.  Some 
of  these  coffins  are  entirely  of  wood  covered  with  white 
stucco,  gilded,  painted  in  bright  colours ;  some  are  in 
bronze,  others  have  the  body  in  wood  and  the  head  in 
bronze,  with  gold  rings  in  their  ears  and  encrustations  of 
gold  on  the  forehead  and  in  the  eyes.  Statuettes  of  cats 
of  different  sizes,  portraits  of  the  goddess  Bastit  with  a 
cat's  head,  or  of  the  god  Nofirtoumou,  are  mingled  with 
the  mummies.  Thence  come  the  thousands  of  bronze 
cats,  big  and  little,  with  which  all  the  antiquaries  of  Europe 
and  Cairo  were  so  abundantly  provided  from  1876  to  1888. 
The  important  cat  illustrated  here,  and  who  lives  now  in 
one  of  the  glass  cases  in  the  "  Salle  divine  "  of  the  Louvre, 
is  a  perfect  type  of  the  species,  long,  slender  in  the  back, 
broad  in  the  hind-quarters,  with  a  delicate,  well-set  head, 
rings  in  the  ears,  a  necklace  round  the  neck,  and  a  little 
scarab  on  the  top  of  the  head ;  the  artist  who  modelled  it 
has  rendered  excellently  and  truthfully  the  supple  bearing 
and  the  bold  physiognomy  of  his  original. 

The  cats  represented  on  the  monuments,  or  the 
mummies  of  which  are  found  in  Egypt,  were  not  of  the 
same  race  as  our  domestic  cat.  Scholars  have  studied 
them  and  are  unanimous — Virchow,  too,  recently — in 
recognizing  them  as  the  Felis  maniculata  and  the  Fells 
chaus,  Egypt  had  tamed  a  few  individual  ones,  but 
had  not  domesticated  the  whole  species.  They  are 
sometimes  to  be  seen  on  the  bas-reliefs  solemnly  seated 

-  See  pp.  212-213. 
215 


Studies  in  Egyptian  Art 


near  their  masters.  It  is  commonly  asserted  that 
they  were  used  for  hunting  birds  in  the  marshes,  and 
Wilkinson  quotes  in  support  a  fairly  large  number  of 
mural  paintings  where  they  stalk  through  the  reeds, 
routing  out  little  birds.  I  confess  that  this  interpre- 
tation does  not  seem  to  me  to  be  correct.  Where 
others  claim  to  recognize  animals  ready  for  the  chase  and 
acting  on  behalf  of  man,  I  only  see  animals,  tame  or  not, 
on  marauding  bent  and  scouring  the  bushes  for  their  own 
purposes ;  just  as  our  domesticated  cat  chases  the  sparrows 
in  our  gardens  and  destroys  the  nests  in  our  parks  without 
any  advantage  to  his  master.  Egyptian  artists,  very  acute 
observers  of  what  was  going  on  around  them,  reproduced 
their  cats'  expeditions,  as  they  noted  other  picturesque 
details  of  the  life  of  nature. 

If  we  examined  the  180,000  cats — neither  more  nor 
less — we  should  probably  come  upon  a  fairly  large  pro- 
portion of  ichneumons.  In  Egypt  the  ichneumon  and 
the  cat  were  always  associated ;  wherever  there  are 
mummies  of  cats  it  may  be  safely  assumed  that 
mummies  of  ichneumons  are  not  far  off.  Cats  or 
ichneumons,  I  hope  the  whole  of  them  will  not  be 
used  to  manure  the  ground,  but  that  some  fine  speci- 
mens may  be  chosen  for  the  museums  of  antiquities  and 
of  natural  history  :  in  sparing  a  few  hundreds,  agriculture 
will  not  lose  much,  and  science  will  gain  considerably. 
The  origin  of  our  tom-cat  has  long  been  under  discussion ; 
some  refer  it  to  Egypt,  others  to  Europe.  It  would  be 
a  pity  not  to  profit  by  such  an  invasion  of  Egyptian  cats, 
and  to  try  to  obtain  a  definite  solution  of  the  question. 


216 


INDEX 


A 

Abousir-el-Malak,   excavations  of, 
29 

Abydos,  30,  31,  37 ;  Memnonium  of, 

95, 134  ;  ruins  of,  94 
Adoni  (Adonai),  122 
Ahhotpou  I,  145,  146.  158 
Ahhotpou,  Queen,  152,  158,  206 
Ahmosis  I,  138 
Al,  138;  portrait  of,  98 
Al,  son  of  Hapi,  197,  198 
Alexandria,  bas-reliefs  of,  33 
Amenemhait  III,  26,  32 ;  sphinx 

of,  22,  23 ;   statue  of,  22,  28,  37 
Amenertalous,  103 
Amenhotpou,  138 
Amenmeses,  138 
Amenophis  II,  122 
Amen6phis  III,  122,  124,  174 
Amenophis  IV,  120,  122,  123,  124, 

125,  131 
Amenophis,  statue  of,  64 
Amenothes  I,  91 

Amenothes  II,  109,  112,  113,  117, 

118,  134 
Amenothes  IV,  31 
Amenothes,  statue  of,  22,  28 
Amon,  81,  101,  102,  104,  121,  122, 

124,  125,  135,  183,  184,  185; 

priests  of,  92 ;  temple  of,  90,  97, 

137 


Amon  of  Harmhabi,  98 

Amonra,  107,  123 

Amonra,  ark  of,  136 

Anderson,  142 

Ankhari,  the  lady,  175 

Ankhasnofiriabre  en  Hathor,  103 

Ankhnas,  103 

Antouf  kings,  the,  153 

Anubis,  temple  of,  53 

Apis,  146,  149 ;  tomb  of,  79,  145 

Apoui,  tomb  of,  21 

Apries,  143 

Armais,  139 

Asia  Minor,  169,  191 

Assiout,  31 

Assyria,  169 

Ati,  56,  58.  59 

Aton  (Amon).  121,  122,  123,  124, 
125 

Atonian  Dynasty,  fall  of  the,  31 
B 

Bagnold,  Major  Arthur,  142,  143 
Baraize,  M.,  108 
Barrere,  M.,  208,  212 
Barsanti,  M.  Alexandre,  201,  206 
Bastit,  the  goddess,  184,  209,  212, 

213,    215;     her    festival  at 

Bubastis,  210,  211 
Bay,  Dr.,  133 


Index 


Bedrechein,  141 
B6n6dite,  M.,  206 
Beni-Hassan,  30,  31,  87,  214 
Berbers,  the,  129 
Bercheh,  31 

Berlin  Museum,  152 ;  Scribe  of  the, 

20,  21 
Biban-el-Molouk,  111 

Bissing,  F.  W.  von,  17,  18,  20, 

21,  22,  23,  24,  25.  26,  27,  34, 
35 

Bocchoris,  33 

"Book  of  the  Dead,"  113,  114, 
203 

Borchardt,  24,  25 

Boulaq  Museum,  63,  70,  71,  81, 

85,  86,  135,  137,  138,  145,  146 
British  Museum,  153 
Bruckmann,  17,  23 
Bubastis,  124,  154,  157,  161,  190, 

210,  211,  215 

C 

Cairo,  39,  108,  154,  179,  208,  215 

Cairo  Museum,  the,  21,  22,  29,  32, 
33,  39,  44,  46,  47,  93,  96,  98, 
108,  114,  115,  116,  128,  129,  131, 
134,  157 ;  Scribe  of  the,  20 

Carter,  92 

Caviglia,  141 

Chaldsea,  169,  171 

Champollion,  121,  172,  186 

Chassinat,  M.,  206 

Cheikh-Abd-el-Gournah,  115,  178, 
179 

Cheikh  el-Beled,  statue  of  the,  21, 
46,  48,  88 


Cheikh-Said,  31 

Cheops,  30,  209;  statuette  of,  37, 
38 

Chephren,  30.  44,  46,  47,  48,  137, 

209;  statuette  of,  37,  38 
Chephren,  statues  of  the,  21,  24,  37 
Coptos,  22 

Cow,  the,  of  Dek-el-Bahari,  18, 

106,  117 
Crete,  169 

Crouching  Scribe,  the,  18,  48,  49, 
60,  61,  63,  64,  65,  84,  88 


D 

Dahchour,  145,  150,  152,  158 
Darius,  140,  206 
Davis,  Theodore,  126 
Decauville,  90 
Denderah,  31,  123 
Deir-el-Bahari,  92,  108,  110,  115; 

favissa  of,  98;  porticoes  of,  95 
D6v6ria,  196 
Dog,  nome  of  the,  41 
Double,  the,  51,  52,  53,  54,  111. 

115.  143,  193,  198 


E 

Ebers,  17 

Edfou,  temple  of,  210 
Edgar,  Mr.,  154,  155 
Egypt,  financial  system  of  ancient, 
197,  198 

Egyptian  cats,  208,  209,  214,  215, 
216 

Egyptian  jewellery,  145-153 ;  201- 
207 


218 


Index 


Egyptian  Scribes,  61,  62,  63,  67, 
68,  69,  74,  75,  76,  77,  199,  200 

Egyptian  statuary,  17-35 

El-Amarna,bas-reliefs  of ,131 ;  necro- 
polis of,  31,  125,  133 ;  sculptors 
of,  130;  statues  of,  100 

El-Tell,  tombs  of,  31 

Es-Sayed  Eid,  155 

Ethiopia,  95,  102,  124,  139 

Ethiopian  pyramids,  the,  153 

Euphrates,  170 

Europe,  215,  216 

F 

Fayoum,  the,  26,  29,  94,  137 
Ferlini,  153 

G 

Garwood,  142 
Gebelein,  22,  179,  214 
Germany,  214 
Gizeh,  39,  95 

Gizeh  Museum,  21,  24,  66,  68,  70, 

152,  206 
Gizeh,  necropolis  of,  21,  29 
Gold  and  silver  vases  and  cups, 

160-8 
Golenischeff,  32 
Gournah,  138 

Gournah,  temple  of,  95,  134 
Gr6baut,  37 
Greece,  119 

H 

Hachopsouitou,   Queen,  97,  111, 

112,  119 
Hakori,  196 
Hapi-T'aufi,  Prince,  53 


Harmais,  statues  of  the,  22 
Harmhabi,  100,  130,  133,  135,  138, 
139 

Hathor,  the  goddess,  41,  42,  109, 
110,  111,  112,  114,  115,  117,  118, 
187 

Heliopolis,  123 
Hellenes,  the,  33 
Heracleopolis,  30,  94 
HermopoHs,  28,  31,  105 
Herodotus,    32,    124,    140,  210, 
211 

Hor,  the  scribe,  84 
Horus,  188 

Horus  Qa-aou,  stele  of  the,  19 
Hrihor,  124 

Hyksos  king,  portrait  of  a,  22 
I 

I  Icelanders  and  ghosts,  176 
louaa,  122 

Isis,  97,  116,  147,  148,  202,  204 
Isis,  statue  of,  96 

K 

Karnak,  31, 37, 105, 138, 139  ;favissa 
of,  22,  26,  90,  94,  95,  96 ;  modern 
village  of,  90;  temple  of,  135 

Khabokhni,  188 

Khamoisit,  high  priest  of  Phtah, 
145,  146 

Khasakhmoui,  the  Pharaoh,  19,  20 
Khitas,  the,  151 
Khnoum,  135 

Khnoumhotpou,  the  dwarf,  85,  86, 
I     87,  88,  89 


Index 


Khonsou,  98,  99 
Khounaton,  125,  138 
Khouniatonou,  31,  100,  126,  130^ 
133 

Kings,  Valley  of  the,  126 
King-Serpenty  stele  of  the,  19 
Knom,  56,  58 


Leghorn,  172 

Legrain,  M.,  22,  26,  91,  94,  95,  96, 

98,  100,  105 
Lepsius,  57 
Leyden,  20 

Leyden  Museum,  153,  175 

Leyden  papyrus,  the,  177 

Libyan  Desert,  the,  112 

Libyan  Mountains,  the,  113 

Longp6rier,  M,  de,  49 

Louis  XIV,  peruke  of  time  of,  180 

Louvre,  the,  18,  21,  22,  49,  54,  55, 
58,  60,  64,  67,  68,  70,  79,  80,  84, 
125,  130,  134,  136,  145,  146,  152, 
153,  172,  178,  183,  185,  186,  195. 
200,  205,  206,  215 

Louxor,  31,  107 

M 

Macedonians,  the,  102 
Madagascar,  queens  of,  104 
Mait,  213 

Mankahorou,  statuette  of,  37 

Mantimehe,  103,  104 

Mariette,  22,  24,  32,  38,  55,  60, 
62,  66,  79,  94,  98,  100,  103,  116, 
121,  136,  139,  145,  150,  151,  196, 
206 


Matonou    (Amten),  statue  of,  at 

Berlin,  29 
Medinet  Habou,  128 
Mediterranean,  the,  171,  194 
Meidoum,  46,  48,  62,  63;  excava- 
tions of,  29,  30 
Memphian  Empire,  the,  20 
Memphis,  25,  28,  29,  30,  31,  32, 
37,  55,  72,  78,  79,  88,  123,  137, 
140 

Menephtah,  136,  138 
Menna,  182 
Menzaleh,  Lake,  32 
Minieh,  prince  of,  85,  87 
Minou,  the  god,  22 
Mit-Fares,  22 
Mit-Eahineh,  24,  37,  39 
Mohammed-AH,  142 
Mohammed  Effendi  Chaban,  154 
Mond,  Mr.,  178 
Montouhotpou,  111 
Montouhotpou,  statue  of,  26 
Montouhotpou  I,  temple   of,  22, 
106 

Montouhotpou  III,  statue  of,  22 
Montouhotpou  V,  tomb  of,  92 
Monuments  de  VArt  Antique,  34 
Morgan,  M.  de,  66,  73,  145 
Moursi  Hassanein,  155 
Munich,  20,  21 
Mus^e  Egyptien,  the,  26,  34 
Mycerinus,  statues  of,  36,  37,  38, 
39,  41,  43,  44,  46,  47,  48 


N 

Naf^rouriya,  97 

Nai,  the  lady,  173,  174,  177,  186 


220 


Index 


Naousirriya,  statuette  of,  37 
Napata,  31 

Naples  Museum,  the,  20 

Ndr-mQY,  palette  of,  19 

Nasi,  statue  of,  21 

Naville,  92,  106,  107,  111,  118 

Nectanebo  I,  116 

Nectanebo  II,  33 

Neith,  204  ;  temple  of,  167,  169 

Nephthys,  147,  148,  202 

Nile,  the,  27,  112,  170 ;  valley 

the,  28 
Nofirtoumou,  the  god,  215 
Nofrihotpou,  funeral  of,  88 
Nofrit,  statue  of,  22 
Nonit,  the  goddess,  202 
Nsiphtah,  103 
Nubia,  31 

O 

Omm-el-Gaab,  tombs  of,  29 
Osiris,  116,  123,  147,  148,  205 
Osorkon  II,  statuette  of,  103 
Ostraca,  98 
Ounas,  201 

Ousimares  (Osymandyas),  158 
Oiisirmdrl,  149 
Oxyrrhinchus,  41 

P 

Pakhlt,  213,  214 

Pehournowri,  statuette  of,  79,  84 
Perfume  ladles  described,  190-3 
Persian  Conquest,  the,  91 
Persians,  the,  104 
Petesomtous,  116 


Petrie,  Flinders,  26,  47,  129,  131 

Phoenicia,  193 

Phoenicians,  the,  171 

Phtah,  87,  95,  141, 145,  173;  temple 

of,  37,  140 
Phtah-Mai,  173,  174 
Pioupi,  bronze  statue  of,  21 
Poubastit  (Bubastis),  209 
Psammetichus,  116,  117,  206 
Psammetichus  I,  33,  103 
Psarou,  146,  147 
Pyramids,  plain  of  the,  29 

Q 

Qodshou,  battle  of,  151 
E 

Ra,  the  solar  god,  123,  124 
Rahotpou,  the  scribe,  84 ;  tomb  of, 
62 

Ramessides,  the,  91,  103,  124 
Ramke,  the  scribe,  84 
Ramses,  130;  statues  of  the,  22 
Ramses  I,  138 

Ramses  II,  30,  136,  137,  138,  140, 
141,  142,  144,  145,  148,  151,  158, 
159,  160,  170,  206;  statues  of, 
26,  101,  135 

Ramses  III,  102 

Ramses  VI,  101,  102 

Ramses-Nakhoulti,  101 

Ranofir,  44,  46,  88;  statue  of,  70, 
71,  72,  77.  78 

Beaders,  statue  of  the,  at  Cairo, 
21 

Reisner,  39,  44 


Index 


Rome,  119 
Roug6,  M.  de,  196 
Roxelane,  127 

S 

Sabou,  tomb  of,  66 

Said,  the,  31,  113 

St.  Sebastian,  paintings  of,  83,  84 

Sais,  105 

Saite  jewels,  201 

Saladin,  39 

Salt  Collection,  the,  120,  194 
San,  196 
Sanakht,  138 

Sanmaout,  statue  of,  96,  97 
Sanouosrlt  I,   statue  of,   22,  46; 

bas-relief  of,  22,  37  ;  (Ousirtasen), 

94,  95 

Sanouosrit  III,  94;  statue  of,  46 
Sapoui    (Sepa),  statue  of,  in  the 

Louvre,  21,  29,  64 
Saqqarah,  necropolises  of,  21,  29, 

49,  55,  63.  66,  76,  85,  88,  95; 

village  of,  72 
Sculpture  in  wood,  172-4,  183-9 
Scythians,  the,  140 
Serapeum,  the,  55,  60,  64,  79,  145, 

146,  148,  150,  153,  206 
Serddb,  the,  51,  60,  62 
"  Service  des  Antiquit^s,"  the,  143, 

155,  178 
Sesostris,  140 
Setinakht,  138 

Setoui  I,  30,  37,  95,  121,  130,  138 ; 
hypogeum  of,  134 ;  statue  of, 
135 

Setoui  II,  138,  160 


Shepherd  Kings,  the,  22,  32 ;  por- 
traits of,  196 

Sheshonq,  194 

Sidi  Ahmed  el-Bedaoul,  210 

Simon,  Herr,  of  Berlin,  129 

Sinai,  129 

Siout,  54 

Siphtah,  160 

Siphtah  Menephtah,  138 

Sistrum,  nome  of  the,  41 

Skhemka,  the  scribe,  55,  56,  58, 
59,  60.  64,  65,  84 

Sokaris,  boat  of  the  god.  203 

Sovkemsaouf,  22 

Sovkhotpou,  the  king,  22,  84 

Speos-Artemidos,  cemetery  of  cats 
at,  213,  214 

Sphinxes,  the  so-called  Hyksos,  28, 
32 

Stephenson,  General,  142 
Sycomore,  Canton  of  the,  41 
Syria,  95,  124,  139,  164,  171 

T 

Taharkou,  103 
Taharqa,  196 

Taia,  98,  99,  121,  122,  134 
Tamal,  singing-girl  of  Neith,  167, 
169 

Tanis,  32,  102,  105,  137 ;  sphinxes 

of,  28 
Tantah,  fair  of,  210 
Taouasrlt,  170 
Tbouboul,  184 
Tell  Bastah,  ruins  of,  208 
Tell-el-Khanzir,  142 
Thebaid,  the,  102 


222 


Index 


Theban  Empire,  the,  21,  22,  28, 
32 

Thebes,  28,  30,  31,  88,  92,  93,  95, 
105,  120,  123,  124,  125,  128,  131, 
137,  145,  181,  183,  187 

Thebes,  government  of,  103,  104 

Thinis,  30 

Thinis-Abydos,  29 

Thinites,  the,  20,  29 

Thot,  city  of,  31 

Thoutmosis,  138 

Thoiitmosis,  statue  of,  22 

Thoutmosis  III,  91,  94,  96,  97, 
98.  107,  109,  112,  121,  134 

Thoutmosis  IV,  124 

Tl,  88;  statue  of,  70 

Tiyi,  126,  127,  128,  129 

Tiyi,  wife  of  Amenothes  III,  100 

Touaa,  122 

Toui,  the  lady,  178,  183,  184,  185, 
186,  189 

Toumoumtaouneb,  the  royal  cup- 
bearer, 164 
Tourah,  limestone  of,  49,  179 


Toutankhamanou,  133,  134,  138 
Toutanoukhamanou,  98,  99,  100 
Turin    Museum,    64,    183,  186, 
189 

Turin  papyrus,  the,  197 
U 

Upper  Egypt,  41 
V 

Vassalli,  47 
Vienna  Museum,  22 
Virchow,  215 

W 

Wiedemann,  26 
Wilkinson,  216 

Z 

Zagazig,  154,  155,  156,  165,  171 
Zannehibou,  201,  202,  206 


223 


UNWIN  BKOTHERS,  lilMITBD 
WOKING  AND  LONDON. 


GETTY  RESEARCH  INSTITUTE 


3  3125  01034  8023 


